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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



ARBITRATION 



CAPITAL AND LABOR, 



A HISTORY AND AN ARGUMENT 



DANIEL Jr RYAN 




"If there be those who would array Labor against Capital, I am not of 
them, nor with them. If there be those who regard the interests of Labor 
and of Capital as naturally and properly antagonistic, I do not agree with 
them." — Horace Greeley. __..-__..„ 






t 13 18 




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COLUMBUS, O. : 

j^. 131. SMYTHE. 

1885. 



Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1885, by 

Daniel J. Ryan, 

In the Office of Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



5 of Nitschke Bros., 
Columbus. O. 



TO 

JOSEPH D. WEEKS, 

OF PITTSBURGH. 



PREFACE. 



THIS volume was written during the spare 
hours of a legislative session. It is not 
presented to the public as a work of 
literary excellence or of brilliant originality. 
The principles advocated herein are neither new 
nor untried. 

It is my desire to offer a plain statement, in a 
historical and argumentative way, of the value 
and necessity of the peace principle of arbitra- 
tion in settling disputes between capital and 
labor. 

Events are daily transpiring which are crowd- 
ing to the front the importance of amicably 
adjusting the controversies of workingmen and 
their employers. Their dissensions are operating 
injustice and damage to both sides and to society 
at large. There is danger in their occurrence 



VI. PREFACE. 

and continuance, and the conservative friends 
of social order see in these conflicts a subject 
worthy of the gravest consideration. What shall 
be done, is a great and pressing problem. It is a 
matter which affects more living persons than 
any other question with which our race has to 
deal. It is one of the broadest humanity. It is 
not simply a question that deals with dollars, 
wages, strikes, and riots; it deals with human 
wants, sufferings, affections, and grief. Centuries 
of strife have failed to solve it. A few recent 
years of peaceful methods, such as described in 
these pages, have accomplished more than all the 
past. 

In the preparation of this volume, I have 
experienced no little difficulty from the paucity 
of material in American literature, for informa- 
tion upon the subject which it treats. With the 
exception of the valuable Report on Arbitration 
and Conciliation in England, by Mr. Joseph D. 
Weeks, there has been nothing complete published 
in this country. The principle and practice of 
arbitration in trade disputes has received much 
attention from the social economists, statesmen, 
workingmen, and capitalists of England. Hence, 



PREFACE. vii. 

the reader will find that almost all of the evi- 
dence as to its operations and success come from 
English sources. 

I am under deep obligations to Mr. Weeks on 
account of a free recourse to his report, and for 
personal views obtained from him, and I am also 
indebted to Ex-Senator Wallace, of Clearfield, 
Pa., for favors connected herewith. 

I have found in my investigations the follow- 
ing works of vast benefit in properly studying 
the question of voluntary arbitration, and I 
recommend them to those who desire to examine 
this subject: The State in Relation to Labor, by 
W. Stanley Jevons; The Question of Labor and 
Capital, by John B. Jervis; On Work and Wages, 
by Sir Thomas Brassy; On Labor, by W. T. 
Thornton; Trades Unions, by William Trant; The 
History and Development of Guilds, and the Origin 
of Trades Unions, by L. Brentano; Theory of 
Political Economy, by W. Stanley Jevons; Eco- 
nomic Position of the British Laborer, by Henry 
Fawcett; The Social Law of Labor, by William B. 
W T eeden ; Reports of the Condition of the Lndustrial 
Classes in Foreign Countries, London, 1870; Con- 
flicts of Labor and Capital, by George Howell; 



VI 1 1. PREFACE. 

Reports of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, for the 
States of Ohio. Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts, 
and Report of Committee on Trad x lei . in the 
Proceedings of the National Association for the 
Promotion of Social Science, London, 1860. 

With these words, this work is submitted to 
the consideration of an appreciative public. 

DANIEL J. RYAN. 
Portsmouth, 0., April, 1885. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTERS — 

I. The Failure and Fallacy of Strikes 1 

II. Voluntary Arbitration, Its Methods and Operations. 18 

III. Arbitration in France and Belgium; The " Conseils 

des Prud'hommes ;" The Arbitration Act of Austria, 38 

IV. Anthony John Mundella, the Founder of English 

Arbitration 49 

V. Rise and Development of English Industrial Arbitra- 

tion 56 

VI. Voluntary Arbitration in the United States 77 

VII. Trades Unions and Arbitration 91 

APPENDIX — 

I. Arbitration in the English Trades 101 

II. Specimen of an American Arbitration Board •. . . 105 

III. A Bundle of Letters on the Subject 112 

IV. The Ohio Arbitration Act 120 



CHAPTER I 



THE FAILURE AND FALLACY OF STRIKES. 



THE protracted and bitter struggles between 
workmen and employers known as strikes, 
form a subject worthy of special consider- 
ation in treating upon the matter of arbitration. 
Their failure and inefficiency in producing profit- 
able results present an impressive lesson to labor, 
as well as a powerful argument for an appeal to 
the methods of peace and law, in settling in- 
dustrial difficulties. A writer, whose official and 
personal opportunities have given him the right 
to speak with authority on this subject, has this 
to say concerning it: 

"How do strikes originate? The history of 
one in its general features is the history of all. 
A number of men working for a firm or company, 
through their daily conversation become imbued 
with the belief that they should have an advance 
of wages; a meeting is called for some evening, 



2 ARBITRATION. 

the matter is discussed, and finally a committee 
is instructed to respectfully demand of the em- 
ployers an advance of wages. The demand is 
refused or ignored, and no attempt at communi- 
cation with the men is made by the employer. 
The men become morose and sullen, another 
meeting is held, and a strike is resolved upon. 
The men strike, the works are closed for a month 
or more, one of the parties weakens, a request for 
a conference ensues, the difficulty is adjusted, and 
the men return to Avork. It matters not which 
side has been defeated; ill feeling and a desire for 
another test of endurance has obtained a foothold, 
and the war continues until either the employes 
are all dead or scattered, or the employers with- 
draw from the business. If a demand comes 
from the employers for a reduction of wages, the 
method of proceeding is practically the same, 
with the same results."* 

A strike never proved the right or wrong 
of any labor question. In isolated instances it 
may have resulted in some particular good, but 
these cases are rare exceptions in the history 
of strikes. In no case has a strike left the 
workingman in the same prosperous condition in 
which it found him. It leaves him out of money 



* Second Annual Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of Ohio. 

—H. J. Walls, 1878. 



ARBITRATION. 6 

and out of work. It always turns Labor into a 
mendicant, and frequently into a criminal; it 
arouses in Capital feelings of cruel resentment, 
and transforms it into a heartless oppressor. 
The motives, as well as the origin of these strikes, 
are often simple and useless. One of the most 
extensive industrial territories in the United 
States is the Hocking Valley Coal region of 
Ohio. In no other collection of wageworkers in 
this country have strikes been more frequent or 
more damaging. Yet one who has examined by 
personal association, together with experience 
coming only from a practical miner, the condi- 
tions of employment there, says that " the 
majority of these labor troubles originate in 
almost nothing."* There must be, however, ex- 
ceptions to this statement. The terrible struggle 
which has been going on in that region for the 
past year certainly cannot be said to have origi- 
nated " in almost nothing." The protest of the 
miners against a reduction was based on much that 
was just and fair. Nevertheless, the differences 
on this point between the operators and miners 
could have been settled in its first stages by honest 
and frank arbitration. The failure of calm, can- 
did discussion between operator and employe 
frequently leads to dissensions and ill-feelings, 

*Annual Report of Inspector of Mines of Ohio.— Andrew Roy, 1851. 



-i ARBITRATION. 

which usually terminate in a strike. Further, on 
this same matter, he says. " both parties acknowl- 
edge that the price of mining should be reduced 
in the spring and raised in the fall. Yet the 
miners scarcely ever accede to a reduction with- 
out a strike, and the operators never allow an 
advance unless compelled to do so by a threatened 
strike." The bitter experiences of employers 
and employes seem to lessen in but a small degree 
this annual recurrence to the methods of bar- 
barism to settle their differences. The conflict 
goes on. bringing disaster and ruin to the opera- 
tors, and idleness and starvation to the miners. 
Another innocent victim of thesf struggles is 
the workingman of the cities. The price of coal 
during strikes becomes high, or at least they are 
sometimes the pretext for high prices, and the 
article of home use as necessary as the bread on 
the table is purchasable only by paying the price 
of a luxury. It is no blow to the wealthy: their 
fires always burn, even though their coal comes 
from distant districts. So while the miner in his 
struggle entails suffering and want upon his own 
family, his influence for increasing suffering- 
extends to the crowded tenements of the city and 
to the home of the mechanic far distant. The 
unjust demands of the operator have the same 
result. 



ARBITRATION. O 

The moral influence of strikes is depressive. 
Idleness is most conducive to evil; and it is the 
worst enemy of industrial progress. A victim of 
involuntary idleness, as the workingman usually 
is in a strike, is a pitiable spectacle. Willing and 
able to labor, but controlled perhaps by some 
external agency which he must obey. No good 
can come to the laboring classes from such a 
source; it brings bitterness and defeat even when 
their controversy is successful. 

Every strike is a pecuniary disaster to capital 
and labor. The misled wagemen are losers even 
when the imaginary victory is theirs. The annals 
of strikes are a series of foolish losing struggles 
for labor. A strike for a wage advance of ten 
per cent., if kept up for one month, and if the 
parties are successful, is no pecuniary advance- 
ment. It will require that striking labor ten 
months of uninterrupted work to earn back the 
money lost by the strike. Who is ahead in the 
contest? If the strike lasted thirty days, and 
the advance gained was only five per cent., the 
laborer would have to work one year and eight 
months to earn back what he lost during the 
strike! Is there any money to labor in striking? 

A review of the history of the protests of 
labor against the aggressions of capital will be 
interesting in demonstrating the failure of strikes. 



b ARBITRATION. 

The path of English industry is strewn with 
tombstones marking ruinous and ineffective 
struggles of labor. The earliest wide spread and 
long continued strike of English workmen was 
that of the Lancashire cotton spinners, which 
occurred in 1810. In that year the spinners in 
the mills of Manchester, Stockport, Macclesfield, 
Staleysbridge, Ashton, Hyde, and as far north as 
Preston, left their work simultaneously. Thirty 
thousand persons were thrown out of employ- 
ment. The strike, which was for an advance in 
wages, continued four months. It was four 
months of misery, lawlessness, and destitution to 
the participants. The hard-earned savings of 
years were consumed in endeavoring to win the 
contest. The advance was not obtained — the 
desired point was an increase of fifty per cent. : 
failure was the result. The loss was enormous, 
but out of the pocket of the laborer. The spin- 
ners of Manchester struck in 1829; they lost a 
million and a quarter of dollars before it was 
ended. Gain? Nothing. In 1830 the spinners at 
Ashton and Staleysbridge lost the same amount 
in wages by a strike. In 1833 the builders of 
Manchester inaugurated a famous strike. They 
had nothing to show for their struggle but a loss 
of $360,000 in wages. The spinners of Preston 
lost $360,000 in 1836. In 1854 seventeen thou- 



ARBITRATION. 



sand spinners in the same place struck for thirty- 
six weeks, and they lost $2,100,000 in wages. 
The iron workers of England lost in 1854 $215, 
000 in the same way. The dear price of strikes 
is not always paid by labor; capital suffers as 
well. The Belfast linen operators in 1875 lost 
$1,000,000 by one season's strike. This treats of 
but a few instances. In the pottery strikes of 
Staffordshire of 1834 and 1836, the loss to both 
workmen and manufacturers was $943,050 in the 
latter year, and $250,000 to the workmen alone 
in the former. 

The bread winners of America never made a 
dollar by striking. When every such transaction 
is put upon the trial sheet of investigation, and 
subjected to cool calculation, the figures will be 
on the debit side every time. The great railroad 
strike of 1877 was founded on the just demands 
of employes who, as a matter of humanity, were 
entitled to increased wages. It was simply a 
labor rebellion against the aggregated and op- 
pressive railroad capital of the country. But 
what did it amount to? Nothing. Lives lost, 
property burned, public peace disturbed, and 
every day was a day lost in bread and butter to 
the strikers. The loss to labor was millions, to 
capital, tens of millions. It settled no dispute; 
£ave to no man work. 



8 ARBITRATION. 

In 1880 the Bureau of Labor Statistics of 
Massachusetts made a thorough report of the 
result of 159 strikes in this country. The report 
classifies the strikes and their causes as follows: 
to secure better wages, 118; to secure shorter 
days, 24; to enforce union rules, 9; resisting 
employers' rules, 5; against introduction of 
machinery, 3. The report shows the result to 
have been as follows: unsuccessful, 109; success- 
ful, 18; compromised, 16; partly successful, 6; 
result unknown, 9; contest then pending, 1. In 
the various Fall River strikes in that State, the 
enormous sum of $1,400,000 has been lost in 
wages by the voluntary idleness of the operatives. 
And it is stated that " in more than sixty-eight 
percent, of them, loss in wages, varying with the 
extent and duration of the strike, has been sub- 
mitted to without any material benefit accruing 
to oifset it."* 

The strike of the Amalgamated Association 
of Iron and Steel Workers of Cincinnati and 
vicinity in 1881 was a five months' struggle 
which cost the strikers $500,000 in wages and 
injured the trade of Cincinnati to the extent 
of a million and a half of dollars. In the end 
both parties got together, talked it all over, made 
concessions to each other, and an agreement was 

* Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.— 1880, pages G5-68. 



ARBITRATION. V 

reached. This was practically arbitration. Why 
not do that at first? 

The strike of the Brotherhood of Telegraphers 
throughout the United States and Canada com- 
menced July 19, 1883. It lasted just thirty days. 
The demands of the strikers were for shorter 
hours of labor and an increase of pay. They 
claimed that eight hours for day work and seven 
hours for night work should be the limit; and 
demanded an increase of fifteen per cent, on 
salaries. They accomplished absolutely nothing, 
and on the 18th of August the Brotherhood pro- 
nounced the strike a failure, and advised all 
operators who could secure situations to go to 
work. 

They paid an immense sum in lost wages for 
their contest, which Avas just and deserved suc- 
cess. William Orton, President of the Western 
Union Telegraph Company, testified before a 
Congressional committee that telegraph operators 
could not perform daily more than six hours 
of continuous labor without endangering their 
health. Their wages had been reduced twenty- 
five per cent, in three years. They had grounds 
for complaint, but striking brought no relief. 

It is stated by Andrew Roy, formerly Ohio's 
Mine Inspector, that the strikes among the Hock- 
ing Valley coal miners have been almost annual 



10 ARBITRATION. 

for the past twelve years. And he says that " it 
would be a very moderate calculation to place the 
losses to the miners alone, the result of striking, 
as equal to three hundred thousand dollars a 
year." Thus in twelve years the loss to the 
miners has been three million six hundred thou- 
sand dollars! Labor able to be performed, but 
absolutely annihilated. The mine operators' loss 
is estimated very low at five millions of dollars. 
Add to these pecuniary losses, the lawlessness and 
bloodshed that has resulted from these heated 
conflicts, and what answer can prove striking a 
benefit to labor? 

Pages and pages of narratives of these in- 
jurious and unsuccessful contests between work- 
men and capitalists could be recited. But enough 
has been said to show that whatever good is 
accomplished by these struggles is paid for at a 
cost and sacrifice which never brings adequate 
returns. 

In this general censure of the uselessness of 
strikes, I am not forgetful of the fact that oft- 
times they have been the ultimate and only 
remedies of labor in its effort to obtain justice. 
But I hold it to be true, that there is a better and 
cheaper method of protecting the workingman, 
and giving him justice in his disputes with 
capital. Happily influences are at work which 



ARBITRATION. 11 

are daily directing, at the same time protecting, 
labor in its demands. The trade unions of to- 
day, contrary to the opinions of many, are the 
most potent factor in preventing rash and useless 
strikes in the domain of capital and labor. They 
have their missions, and it has uniformly been 
more for good than for evil. And when the}^ do 
inaugurate a strike, this can be said for them — 
that it is only done after the maturest delibera- 
tion, and after the cost, as far as the governing 
power can see, is fully estimated. William Trant, 
in his valuable little treatise recently written on 
Trade Unions, their Origin and Objects, Influence 
and Efficacy, presents a very effective defense 
against the charges made against them; and from 
this source I quote at length, as showing their 
relations to strikes. While he is speaking of the 
English societies, it may be observed that the 
same is applicable, but in a more appropriate 
degree, to the societies of American workmen. 

" In order, however, that trade unions may 
lay claim to fitness for carrying out their objects, 
they must show something more than that they 
are able to conduct a strike to a successful issue, 
to palliate the evils of an unsuccessful strike, and 
to succeed in occasionally forming a board of 
arbitration. They must show that in their very 
nature they have the desire and power to prevent 



AKBITRAn 

strikes. It is gratifying to be able to state that in 
this respect, also, the trade anions are eminently 
successful. Indeed, economy, if nothing else 

would dictate such a policy. The executories 
of trade unions have been tanght by experience, 
that even when an object is worth striving for, a 
strike is often the worst, and always the most 
expensive, way of obtaining it Strikes is 
rule, are a dernier resort, and are more frequently 
discountenanced by the general secretary than 
approved of by him. Indeed, it is the boast 
of most trade union secretaries that they have 
prevented more strikes than they have originated. 
This is all the more creditable, because some 
branch or other is always urging a strike. At 
least twenty times in as many ihoe: — rote 

Mr. Allan, "we have recommended that a strike 
should not take place 'About one-third,' an- 
swered Mr. Applegarth. when questioned on the 
subject by the Royal Commissioners, 'of the 
applications made to us to strike, during the last 
few years, have been refused 3.nd Mr. Mac- 
Donald, Secretary of the House Painters' Alli- 
ance, said, ' Our parent bc ::t:~~ never originated a 
strike, but has stopped many. 7 The desire of the 
trade unionists to prevent strikes is also shown 
by the following resolution, which was unani- 
mously agreed upon at the Trade Unions' Con- 



ARBITRATION. 13 

gress in 1874, viz.: 'That in the opinion of this 
Congress, that in all trades where disputes occur, 
and where it is possible to prevent strikes by 
starting co-operative establishments, all trades 
societies and trades councils be recommended to 
render such assistance as lies in their power, and 
thus, as far as possible, prevent strikes and lock- 
outs in the future.' This, at any rate, shows that 
the unions are as willing to devote their funds to 
the prevention of strikes as to their origination; 
and although some of the speakers to that reso- 
lution showed a preference for co-operative prin- 
ciples inconsistent with a thorough belief in those 
of trade unionism, } r et the congress wisely limited 
its resolution to those circumstances when the 
co-operative form of trading is certain to prevent 
a strike, and not to the promulgation of co- 
operative principles generally." 

And he verified his argument by the accounts 
of the various English trade unions, that they 
spend, comparatively, a very small per cent, of 
their funds in sustaining strikes. In 1882, the 
Amalgamated Engineers, with an income of 
£124,000 and a cash balance of £168,000, ex- 
pended in strikes, including the support they 
gave to other trades, £890 only, less than one per 
cent. The Iron Founders spent out of an income 
of £42,000, £214; the Amalgamated Carpenters 



14 ARBITRATION. 

who had been engaged in strikes, expended 
£2,000 out of £50,000, only four per cent.: the 
Tailors spent £d^Jo out of a fund of £18,000; the 
Stone Masons, with a trade union of eleven 
thousand members, spent nothing in strikes. 
During six years, it is estimated that seven 
English trade unions spent in the settlement of 
disputes. £162.000 out of a capital of almost 
£2,000,000. In 1882, these specific societies, with 
an aggregate income of £330.000 and a cash 
balance of £360,000, expended altogether in 
matters of dispute about £6,000. These figures 
from Frederic Harrison's address before the Trade 
Union Congress at Nottingham, in October. 1883, 
certainly are creditable t<> the cause of trade 
unionism. "When it is remembered that ninety- 
nine per cent, of these societies' expenditures 
were for benevolent and provident purposes, and 
one per cent, only for strikes, it is absurd to say 
that the chief object of a trade union is to foster 
trade disputes." 

As far as industrial organizations can prevent 
these conflicts, they have lent all their powers 
and machinery to that end. Yet in spite of their 
unquestioned attempts, there has been, and will 
continue to be. these terrible and costly struggles 
which have crippled labor and its cause, and at 
the same time almost destroved the mechanism 



ARBITRATION. 15 

of trade. The condition of things, therefore, 
compels labor and capital in their own interests, 
and society for its peace, to go farther and inquire 
whether there is " a balm in Gilead " for these 
troubles. Strife and stubbornness and bulldozing 
have failed. The inhuman system of lock-outs 
— capital's starving-out process — does not admit 
of an argument in defense. The situation is 
pointedly put by George Howell, who was at one 
time Secretary of the English Trade Union 
Congress. Said he, " the whole question lies in a 
nutshell. Is brute force better than reason? If 
it be, then a costermonger may be a greater 
personage than a philosopher, and Tom Sayers 
might have been considered superior to John 
Stuart Mill." It is obvious, and it is needless to 
argue the question, that public interests, as well 
as the individual interests of employer and em- 
ploye, would be best subserved if the same result 
in industrial disputes could be attained without 
the barbarisms of strikes and lock-outs. If 
differences could be corrected amicably without 
the cessation of labor and the depreciation of 
capital, it would certainly be money in the pocket 
of the worker as well as the capitalist. Take, for 
instance, the strike of the colliers of South Wales 
in 1875. It included 120,000 workmen, and 
lasted seventeen weeks. The loss in wages has 



1 ': ARBITRATION. 

d variously calculated from three to five 
millions of dollars : and. after all that loss, it was 
finally settled by the miners and operators com- 
ing together, and by reasonable methods arbitra- 
ting their differences in a manner that provided 
a basis which prevented many a subsequent 
com—: 

When men of labor and capital meet together 
as men of business should meet, and discuss their 
differences, in a friendly spirit, the chances are 
altogether in favor of an amicable settlement, 
profitable in the end, to all concerned and parti- 
cipating. Their success runs in parallel lines; if 
they diverge iross, the symmetry which the 

laws of trade and nature design is marred. As 
the bow unto the arrow is. useless ne without 
the other, sc La labor and capital. Labor is 
capital: capital is labor: and in this stage of 
- t - cannot have one without both. 

_ is remedy for the conflict. It is the 

remedy that civilized nations have substituted for 
war: the remedy that has killed the doctrine that 
''might is right."' It is the submission to the 
influence of reason. The voluntary arbitration 
of labors troubles and capital's claims, trusting 
to an enlightened public opinion to sustain 
awa: - is the only rational method consistent 
with the welfare of society This inclusion is 



ARBITRATION. 17 

justified on the following summarized grounds: 

1. Strikes have failed to accomplish what the 
workingman demands, although they have given 
him partial relief. 

2. Their enormous cost in wages thrown 
away has proven that no good that comes from 
them is worth the price paid. 

3. Their demoralizing effect, generally culmi- 
nating in lawlessness and at times in bloodshed, 
antagonizes public opinion to the just claims 
of labor. 

4. Their arbitrary management, which creates 
a general idleness in a trade when the irritation 
is local, is clearly unjust. 

5. They lead to an unjust distribution of 
wages by making the uniform rates of wages 
established apply to the indolent and unskilful as 
well as to the industrious and efficient workman. 

Just arbitration has none of these evils. Is it 
not better to make equity a living principle in all 
disputes of the wage workers, and seek to bring 
the force of peaceful justice into play, instead 
of the more violent and damaging contests, which, 
if won, are but defeats? How shall that be done? 
How has it been done? We shall see. 



CHAPTER II. 



VOLUNTARY ARBITRATION — ITS METHODS 
AND OPERATIONS. 



ARBITRATION is the adjudication by private 
persons appointed to decide a matter or 
matters in controversy, on a reference 
made to them for that purpose, either by agree- 
ment of the disputants, or by the order or 
suggestion of a court of law. When the subject 
to be decided is one of work or wages, or both, 
arising between employer and employe, it is 
industrial arbitration. The proceeding generally 
is called a submission to arbitration; the persons 
appointed to decide are termed a Board of Arbi- 
trators or Referees, and their opinion or adjudi- 
cation of the subject-matter before them is called 
an award. Boards consist usually of an even 
number of members, and when they fail to agree 
they call upon a third person who is known as 
the umpire. His decision expresses the award. 
One of the ancillaries to arbitration is the effort 



ARBITRATION. 19 

to promote harmony and an agreement between 
the disputants before their contest is subjected to 
the formal inquiry and decision of arbitration; 
this is known as conciliation. With these prefa- 
tory and explanatory words, an examination will 
be made into the methods and worth of industrial 
arbitration. 

I do not claim that courts of arbitration, even 
when based upon the voluntary action of labor 
and capital, are a complete panacea for all the ills 
of trade and industry. As long as men have 
passions there will be " wars and rumors of war," 
but I do claim that they will, in a wonderful 
degree, dispense with those disastrous agencies 
now used in the settlement of trade disputes. 

There is a distinction to be made in the 
beginning between statutory arbitration and vol- 
untas arbitration. The former applies to arbi- 
tration, the awards of which have the force 
of judgments of courts; in fact, such a board of 
arbitration is a court for the time being, having 
full power to subpoena witnesses and enforce 
its judgments as a court of record. Voluntary 
arbitration is an entirely different system. As 
the term indicates, there is no authority of law 
unless it be in the method of erecting the boards. 
Its awards have not the force of judgments, and 
it rests upon the honor of the disputants, rather 



20 AKBITEATION. 

than upon the writ of the sheriff, to carry them 
into effect. All the experience and history on 
this question is uniformly to the effect, that the 
only successful arbitration between labor and 
capital in the past has been purely voluntary. 
For years there have been upon the statute books 
of many of the States laws providing for arbi- 
tration of disputes, but they have never been 
applied in labor troubles. Boards with a justice 
of peace air about them, and clothed with powers 
of compulsion, fines, and commitment, have 
never been considered by contesting employer 
and employe as a safe or judicious forum to 
submit their case. In England since the fifth 
year of the reign of George IV. (1824) there has 
been in force a statute providing for arbitration 
in the industrial disputes. Under it tribunals 
with compulsory powers and processes were 
created, but it still remains a dead letter, and has 
been especially objectionable both to employers 
and employed. 

The opinion of those who have been close 
observers of this matter are of interest as bearing 
on this subject. In this country no man has 
given the question of arbitration a broader and 
deeper investigation than Mr. Joseph D. Weeks, 
of Pittsburg. In 1878 he was appointed a special 
Commissioner of the State of Pennsylvania to 



ARBITRATION. 21 

proceed to England and examine in person the 
methods and operations of the system of volun- 
tary arbitration, now a settled question in that 
country. His comprehensive and able report to 
Governor Hartranft in December, 1878, contains 
the result of his full examination. He says: 
" The voluntary feature of these boards is one to 
which I desire to call particular attention. Both 
Mr. Mundella and Mr. Kettle, to whom the cause 
of arbitration and conciliation in England owes 
much that it is, and who represent somewhat 
diverse views on the subject, agree that these 
boards should be voluntary and not compulsory. 
Though there are acts of Parliament, which pro- 
vide compulsory legal powers by which either 
side can cornpel the other to arbitrate on any 
dispute, these powers have never, in a single 
instance, so far as I could learn, been used; but 
the large number of differences that have been 
settled by arbitration in Great Britain in the last 
eighteen years have all been voluntary in their 
submission and in the enforcement of the award." 
Prof. W. Stanley Jevons, the eminent English 
economist, speaking of arbitration, says: "All 
available evidence tends to show that successful 
boards of arbitration must be purely voluntary 
bodies. * * In all probability success 

will be best obtained in the settlement of trade 



22 ARBITRATION. 

lisputes by keeping lawyers and law? as rnuch at 
a distance as possible. There must be sponta- 
neous, or, at least, voluntary approximation of 
the parties concerned. It is a question, not 
of litigation, but of shaking hands in a friendly 
manner, and sitting down to a table to talk the 
matter over. The great evil of the present day 
is the entire dissension of the laborer and the 
capitalist; if we once get the hostile bodies to 
meet by delegates around the same table, in a 
purely voluntary and equal footing, the first great 
evil of dissension is in a fair way of being over- 
c-n-.e."^ And Judge Rupert Kettle, a strong 
advocate of arbitration, contends "that, according 
::t of our laws and the freedom of our 
people, any procedure, to be popular, must be 
pted voluntarily by both contending parties." 

Arbitration which is purely voluntary is best 
advanced when the method oi ting the boards 

rescribed by some rule or precedent. He: 
Legislation providing for an uniform manner in 
the erection and operation of boards of arbitra- 
tion is always advantageous. To this extent, and 
this only, can laws figure with good results. 

When the proceeding to boards is 

scribed by statute, it gives to them a semi-official 
character which attracts public attention to their 

* The State in Relation to Labor. — IT. Stanley Jetons, p. im. 



ARBITRATION. 23 

sessions and awards. In this way a critical and 
acute public opinion, or sentiment, becomes one 
of the strongest aids to fair and honest awards, 
and it is one of the most effective preventives 
against their repudiation. Often after the parties 
consent to arbitrate, they disagree on the simple 
matter of selecting the board. When the law 
points a clear, fair, and uniform system of crea- 
ting boards for voluntary arbitration, it takes 
away this trivial cause of disagreement. And a 
statute of this nature can go a long ways towards 
providing for many of these preliminary steps 
without in any way impairing the mutuality of 
this system of arbitration. It can fix the mini- 
mum number of each party in the board; it can 
prescribe by whom the board may be officially 
designated as such, and it need not at all interfere 
with the selection of those who are to act upon it; 
it can fix the jurisdiction of these boards as to 
the territory and trade in which they may arbi- 
trate; it may limit and define the service of the 
members of the board, provide for the time and 
manner of electing the umpire, and may give the 
boards powers as to testimony, as well as prescribe 
their manner of making an award. 

Voluntary arbitration then may be regarded 
as the only practicable method of settlement, if 
the parties arbitrate at all. Any other system 



24 ARBITRATION. 

can be seen at a glance to be inoperative. While 
decrees of statutory boards could be enforced 
against the employers, they would as a rule be 
ineffectual against the workmen. Unfortunately 
the latter are oftentimes proof against the execu- 
tion of judgments. But when it is left purely to 
the honesty and fair play of both sides, the 
chances of success are improved wonderfully. 
Lack of the world's goods does not necessarily 
mean lack of honor. The great mass of work- 
men who would agree to arbitrate could safely be 
relied upon to abide the awards. This objection 
against voluntary tribunals of arbitration cannot 
be sustained, for the instances are few where 
either party has put his honor behind him and 
refused to abide the award. The power of public 
opinion is also great in sustaining a just award. 
Boards in every instance consist of an equal 
number of workmen and capitalists or employers. 
Out of this body there may be appointed a com- 
mittee of inquiry or a board of conciliation. 
This latter board takes cognizance of individual 
disputes, and is wholly informal. It deals with 
lesser troubles; it gives no decision on any given 
matter, because no subject is ever referred to 
them for settlement. They are the good Samari- 
tans of the Board of Arbitration. As their name 
indicates, they are conciliators. If they fail by" 



ARBITRATION. 25 

friendly urging and inquiry to bring harmony, 
the matter in discussion goes before the arbitra- 
tors to be acted on formally. When the dispute 
finally reaches the arbitrators, the claims of the 
workingmen are stated by their Secretary; and 
the objections, or vice versa, by the employers 
through their Secretary. The matter is then one 
of judgment, reason, and justice. The parties 
are presumed to meet as friends and as equals. 
As well might there be no meeting at all if the 
assembling is in any other spirit. And this is 
one signal characteristic of success in arbitration, 
that under it the parties meet as arbitrators before 
they become enemies. Hence the necessity of 
having the board erected before any strike or 
dispute occurs. In time of harmony prepare for 
the " winter of discontent." In prosperity is the 
time to prepare for the antagonism of labor and 
capital. When hard times come, and the compe- 
tition of labor within itself is great, it is almost 
impossible for the industrial classes to procure 
their just concessions from capital. They become 
enemies, and enemies can never arbitrate; friends 
always can. 

The man who works is equal to him for whom 
he works. The difference, if any, between them 
is in the qualities of their individual manhood, 
and not in any positions they occupy. The 



26 ARBITRATION. 

failure of the first board of arbitration in South 
Staffordshire, England, was due to the fact that 
the employers never realized this. They met, 
were seated comfortably at a table with pens, ink, 
and paper, and installed their chairman; the 
workmen were shown to a bench at the side 
of the room, and seated as if they were in court 
awaiting to be tried, rather than fellow citizens 
assembled to agree upon a contract which was as 
important to them as to their employers. Under 
our American ideas such an affair would not 
settle anything. 

After the erection of a board, a matter of vital 
importance is the selection of an umpire. This, 
like the board itself, should be settled upon before 
the contest ripens into the heat of a litigation. 
Who he should be, his qualities and capacities, 
form the gravest questions in voluntary arbitra- 
tion. Must he have a familiar and practical 
knowledge of the subject-matter in dispute? 
Experience in this proves nothing. Some of the 
best umpires in this country and in England 
have been devoid of any practical knowledge of 
the trade in which the dispute occurred. Thomas 
Hughes, M. P., Thomas Brassey, M. P., Henry 
Crompton, and Rupert Kettle have been among 
the most trusted and successful umpires in 
English arbitration, but none of them have been 



ARBITRATION. 27 

practically connected with manufacturing or min- 
ing trades in which their judgment has always 
been received. They have had the confidence 
of the disputing parties, and have given their 
references the strictest and most impartial inves- 
tigation. Just as successful arbitrators were men 
who have been extensive manufacturers, as A. 
J. Mundella and others. The workingmen in 
England call those who decide upon knowledge 
not acquired practically, " stranger referees," and 
they have been strangely prejudiced against them, 
but are beginning to view the matter differently, 
so that it makes but little difference at this time. 
The cause of antipathy to " stranger referees" is 
principally one of class, a feeling that there is a 
lack of sympathy for the laborer. This objection 
in this country would hardly arise, as both parties 
would demand good judgment and honesty, and 
would have no fears as to prejudice. 

The umpire is distinctively a judge. If a 
man will put himself through a course of study 
on the subject of his decision, there is no reason 
why he should not give as fair and as competent 
a judgment as if he were engaged all his life in 
the business. Courts of law are the daily ex- 
amples of men dealing in practical things with a 
theoretical knowledge. This is notably the case 
in patent litigation. Questions of the most 



28 ARBITRATION. 

practical and scientific machinery are decided 
with justice and competency. The principal 
quality desired in an umpire is integrity and 
levelheadedness, with an intelligent conception 
of what he is to pass upon. 

It is not desirable here to lay down any 
principle or basis on which awards can be made. 
That is a duty peculiarly attached to each indi- 
vidual case of arbitration. The Board having 
met, are supposed to be within honest reach of 
every fact and all information that will give them 
light in an honest investigation. If the dispute 
be one of wages, assuredly the basis becomes the 
ability of the manufacturer to pay, the condition 
of the market, and the demands of the workmen. 
To agree upon a basis is the very object of a 
board of arbitration. Mr. Weeks, in his report 
referred to, concerning this, says: "As a matter 
of information it may be said that the practical 
operation of the boards, while all the facts rela- 
tive to prices, competition, demand and supply, 
both of labor and products, are considered, wages 
are generally based on the selling price of the 
article produced. Mr. Kettle, in a noted arbitra- 
tion in the coal trade, found a certain date at 
which the wages paid for work about the colliery 
was satisfactory to both sides. This became the 
ideal,, and served to fix in a general way a ratio 



ARBITRATION. 29 

of wages to prices that would be a satisfactory 
one to both parties. Due notice was taken of 
any changes that had occurred that should serve 
to increase or diminish this ratio, such as reduc- 
tion in the hours of labor, increased expense 
from the mine inspection laws, etc.; and the 
arbitrator in his award endeavored to approxi- 
mate this ratio as near as could be done without 
injustice or injury." This, of course, necessitates 
an examination of the books and business of the 
employer. For this reason it has been strenu- 
ously objected to. But the objection as compared 
with the result at issue is certainly captious. No 
investigation that would reveal transactions nec- 
essary to business success is demanded. The 
question of simply what was the selling price at a 
time agreed upon, is all the board would require 
to be answered. Any confidential imparting of 
information would certainly be regarded by the 
board, representing, as it is supposed, the honor- 
able element of labor and capital. 

After all, it will be asked, may not the Board 
of Arbitration and umpire make a mistake, per- 
haps against the wageworker and perhaps against 
the employer? Certainly. But is there as much 
likelihood of error in the decision by arbitration 
as there is in the violent and blind impulses of a 
strike or a lock-out? As long as candid and cool 



30 ARBITRATION. 

investigation is superior to rash and unreasonable 
action, thus long will arbitration be less fruitful 
of mistakes than strikes. Under the control 
of voluntary arbitration, facts and figures of 
business take the place of malevolence and mere 
assertion, and where a board would err once, a 
strike would err three times. Besides, no board 
or umpire, such as would be selected by intelli- 
gent workmen and employers, could make a 
grossly serious mistake. And such a departure 
as might even sometimes be made — and to err is 
a parcel of our humanity — would only equal a 
short time in amount of wages. Even presuming 
an error, is not that far superior to a strike? 
Boards of Arbitration cannot operate so as never 
to commit an error, but they commit fewer errors 
than contests of force. 

The force of public opinion in sustaining the 
justice of an award of a board, is an important 
aid to the system of voluntary arbitration. In 
this labor would have the advantage, for invari- 
ably in strikes, where justice is on the side of the 
worker, the opinion of an enlightened and reading 
American public has been with him. This feeling, 
that the arbitrators themselves would have to 
face the bar of public sentiment, and hear the 
reflex judgment on their award, would be the 
most potent factor in prompting them to weigh 



ARBITRATION. 31 

candidly, justly, and carefully all that comes 
before them. This would, of course, be cumula- 
tive to their own independence, integrity, and 
ability. 

In order to be of the most advantage, these 
tribunals should be permanent, having a con- 
tinued existence, and ready at any time to take 
jurisdiction of a dispute. In this way the best 
material may be obtained for the board, and its 
judgments will be calmer. To select the arbitra- 
tor from the participants of a struggle, manifestly 
is an impediment to a fair judicial hearing. The 
most successful boards of arbitration are those 
that have been permanent and held stated meet- 
ings at regular intervals. This periodical assem- 
bling of employers and employed to discuss small 
differences, perhaps, or questions of social ad- 
vantage to each, is a very valuable feature. It 
gives both parties a knowledge of their demands, 
necessities, and expenditures. The facing of 
capital and labor as companions and friends is 
of equal benefit and interest to each. Many of 
the disputes in the industrial world can be attrib- 
uted to lack of information in the party origina- 
ting the struggle, while a social contact and a 
mutual interchange of conditions and abilities 
will make labor just in its demands and temper 
capital in its claims. And thus by the modera- 



32 ARBITRATION. 

tion and forbearance peace can dwell between 
them, and more be obtained by both sides than 
if disputes were summarily created. 

The submission, discussion, and decision of 
industrial questions to voluntary boards of ar- 
bitration is purely a matter of business, and is 
clearly the best plan devised by the wit of man to 
avoid unnecessary destruction and loss to labor. 
No other system recommends itself in which " a 
fair price for a fair day's work " is arrived at on 
as just a basis and by as reasonable a method. 
The conflicts of suspicion and distrust between 
manufacturer and employes render the first 
periods of boards of arbitration trying, and, at 
times, discouraging. Oppositions growing out of 
" matters of sentiment" are generally foolish and 
intangible, and furnish no proper cause for the 
exercise of the peace making power. At the 
same time they are apt to be the source of 
disputes. The best remedy for this unfortunate 
condition of things is the friendly contact and 
association of representative workmen and em- 
ployers, that necessarily follows from the opera- 
tions of voluntary tribunals. 

The arbitration which is clothed with the 
power of the law in its methods of deciding and 
in enforcing its awards, has some ardent and 
intelligent advocates. Some friends of arbitra- 



ARBITRATION. 33 

tion have claimed that a legal power to enforce 
the award is fully necessary to a completeness in 
voluntary arbitration; others, equally sincere and 
desirous of its success, have maintained that to 
make arbitration anything but voluntary would 
be to make it inoperative. There are now in 
existence three laws in England relating to arbi- 
tration, and all providing for a legal enforcement 
of the award. The first of these, before referred 
to, was passed in 1824, and the others in 1867 
and 1872. These latter acts were originated by 
Lord St. Leonards and Mr. A. J. Mundella, M. P., 
respectively. They embody the compulsory pro- 
cesses in a court of arbitration, as well as some 
minor provisions as to method of appointment, 
time of meeting, etc. Execution upon goods and 
chattels, as well as imprisonment, are the com- 
pulsory manners of enforcing awards. These 
acts have not been taken advantage of, and they 
are not regarded with much favor by manu- 
facturers or workmen. The bright instances of 
the success of arbitration have uniformly been 
those purely voluntary. The rigors of the law 
have not in any case been called into play to 
enforce an award. That " aggregate honor of 
individuals, which our French neighbors call 
esprit du corps" is the power which sustains the 
decrees of voluntary boards. 



34 ARBITRATION. 

There is no question but that where all the 
proceedings have been voluntary, that some 
awards which can be equally enforced upon 
capitalists and workmen, would be improved by 
conferring legal process. Instances have occurred 
where awards have been repudiated and rejected, 
but as compared with those acted upon and 
sustained, their number is few. In some cases 
where the feeling has been strong, upon the 
publication of an adverse award there has been 
sulking and disappointment among workmen, but 
the whole line of experience confirms the state- 
ment that most awards, satisfactory or otherwise, 
have been acted on. The management of boards 
should be to eliminate from their decisions all 
feeling of conquest or defeat. The business aspect 
of the arbitration, and the desire to promote 
harmony and good-will, should be steadfastly 
adhered to. 

The history of labor, especially of England 
and France, is the brightest testimony to the 
success of voluntary arbitration. Its unques- 
tioned benefits and harmonizing influence seem 
to have given labor renewed confidence in its own 
intellectual strength, while capital has multiplied 
its successes with justice and generosity. 

One incident in the development of industrial 
arbitration is worth recording, for it sheds a 



ARBITRATION. 35 

volume of light upon its advantages: Eighteen 
years ago the North of England iron district was 
in a state of anarchy, resulting from the social 
struggles of labor against capital. A terrible 
conflict about wages paralyzed the trade. The 
capital invested in the enormous mines and iron 
lay idle for months. " Crowds of hunger smitten 
workmen begged for bread in the streets, or 
savagely denounced the capitalists who were 
trying to starve them into submission." There 
had been strikes and lock-outs in this region 
before that of 1866, but that year saw the most 
horrible of all. After four months of idleness, 
ruin, and disaster for all concerned, the workmen 
were compelled to work at their employers' terms. 
An ill-natured, malevolent era of peace followed. 
The revival of trade in 1869 brought on all the 
old symptoms of past strife, and, filled with fear 
and disgust, workman and owner waited for the 
storm to burst. But both were saved by the 
establishment of a board of arbitrators, which has 
existed successfully ever since. By this simple 
but effective method the iron trade of the North 
of England rid itself forever of the curses of 
strikes and lock-outs. And there are now no fewer 
than 100,000 wage workers in that region practi- 
cally secured against industrial trouble by the 
adoption of the principle of voluntary arbitration. 



36 ARBITRATION. 

Principles, which, when practically applied, 
work out such results, are worthy of the best con- 
sideration. They appeal to our better humanity. 
The spirit of the times puts force in the back- 
ground in the settlement of conflicts, whether 
individual or international. It only justifies the 
appeal to force and arms when rights cannot 
otherwise be protected or maintained. The pro- 
gress that has driven duelling from society makes 
nations hesitate before warring over fanciful 
wrongs. The same progress condemns labor 
taking the law into its own hands for the redress 
of its wrongs. This suggests a question: Why 
may not the same spirit of peace that is over- 
spreading men and nations enter the arena of 
labor's conflicts? That light of intellectual ad- 
vancement, to which no nook or corner of our 
race is impervious, has beamed upon the man 
of labor, and brightened him into as shining a 
figure as the man of capital. This is truer of the 
American laborer than of any other. Here, in 
the civilization of a new world and a new era, he 
is a factor of the government in which he lives; 
and, as he is this, it is the grossest injustice to 
compel him to fight for his rights in an uneven 
contest against capital. 

Labor will never obtain its fullest meed of 
success in its conflicts, save through the legitimate 



ARBITRATION. 37 

channel of intelligent contest. The stubborn 
fight which is determined by brute endurance or 
financial backing will be valueless and costly. 
When the workingman meets his employer with 
facts, and figures, and reason, in his demand for 
higher wages, he will win his point, if he is right. 
Society and public opinion will see that he does; 
if he is not right, he ought not to win. 

Tribunals to try the disputes between labor 
and capital are the results of that same pro- 
gressive evolution which has characterized every 
branch of science, art, commerce, and industry. 
They are the outgrowth of the elevation of labor. 

A long time ago, in 1846, the ultimate resort 
to peaceful settlement was prophesied by John 
Bright in his speech on the Factory Bill. Speak- 
ing, then, he said: " The working classes would 
every day become more and more powerful and 
intelligent, not by violent combinations or colli- 
sions with their employers, but by a rational 
union amongst themselves, by reasoning with 
their employers, and by the co-operation of all 
classes." 



CHAPTER III 



ARBITRATION IN FRANCE AND BELGIUM — 
THE "CONSEILS DES PRUD HOMMES 
— THE ARBITRATION ACT OF AUSTRIA. 



IT was late in the history of humanity before 
labor was crowned with freedom. None of 
the ancient nations recognized Lai any- 

thing but slavery in one form or another. The 
condition was but little changed for centuries. 
England was subsequent to France in securing 
liberty and standing to the laborer. The Magna 
Charta of English liberties had no application to 
the workers by hand and muscle. It was a gift 
to the barons and their equals. It applied t 
about half of the people of England at that time: 
that is, those who were freemen. The lab 
was a villein, and a villein was a slave: he was 
not considered a subject. He had no organiza- 
tion or method of protection. For fifteen centu- 
ries the only protector the laboring man had 
against his owners and masters was the Church. 



ARBITRATION. 39 

She stood, the enemy of the oppressor of the 
poor, and she stood alone in her protectorate. 
Afterwards, when the working classes obtained 
representation in the legislature, they found in 
the Parliament and lawyers friends and pro- 
tectors. With these three intercessors the laborer 
came into sunlight. The French laborer de- 
veloped rapidly; and it is to France that we mnst 
look for the origin of industrial arbitration. In 
the history of her labor she furnishes the proto- 
types of the peace and conflict of the trades 
of to-day, for we find the immense strikes of 
modern times foreshadowed by the Jacquerie 
riots of the fourteenth century. 

Unquestionably the first systematized method 
of settling trade disputes in industrial history is 
to be found in the " Conseils des PTud , honimes. ,, ^ r 
This institution is well defined in the law of its 
origin (March 18, 1806) as follows: "The Conseils 
des Pritd'hommes is established in order to put an 
end, by means of reconciliation, to the small 
disputes which arise daily, either between em- 
ployers and workmen, or between foremen and 
workmen and apprentices." These courts were 
established by Napoleon at the petition of the 
workingmen of Lyons. A similar institution 
had existed in that city prior to the passage 

♦Councils of Wise Men. 



40 ARBITRATION. 

of this general law. In Lyons, then, may be 
fixed the birth of arbitration. And it is fitting 
that it should be so. This city, a perfect citadel 
of labor, is the chief silk emporium of France, 
and for the manufacture of the best qualities 
of silks is unrivalled. It has thirty thousand 
looms, and including the suburbs, over one 
hundred thousand. The number of workers 
employed there in the silk industry at the present 
time is not less than one hundred thousand. A 
strike is a rare occurrence, yet disputes are 
frequent; but through the agency of these Conseils 
dies Prud'hommes they are settled cheaply, and 
without much loss of time or money to either 
operators or operatives. The example of Lyons 
was soon followed by the principal cities of 
France. In 1807, Conseils des Prud'hommes were 
established at Rouen and at Nismes; in 1808, at 
Avignon, Carcasonne, Mulhouse, St. Quentin, 
Sedan, Thiers, and Troyes; in 1809 and 1810, at 
Rheims, Lille, Marseilles, and many smaller 
towns. In 1813 there were twenty-seven of these 
courts in France, and in 1840 there were sixty- 
four. Paris established its first council December 
26, 1844. They have been increasing yearly, and 
their careers have been signalized by the most 
satisfactory results. The statistics reveal the 
fact, that 90 per cent, of the cases brought before 



ARBITRATION. 41 

them have been amicably settled. In 1847 there 
were sixty-nine of these councils in France, and 
in that } r ear they had 19,271 industrial disputes 
submitted to them; of this number, 17,951 were 
adjusted by conciliation. In 1850, of 28,000 
cases, 26,800 were settled by conciliation. The 
number of Gonseils des Prud'hommes in 1874 
was 112; at the present time there are about 
150. 

The history of the Conseils des Prud'hommes* 
shows that the struggle of the workingman in 
France has been for equality with his employers. 
This is illustrated by the decree of June 11, 1809: 
" The Conseils des Prud'hommes will be composed 
of masters and workmen; but in no case will the 
number of the latter be equal to that of the former." 
In this condition the workmen were at the mercy 
of their employers. It was not imbued with the 
spirit of fair play; and the French mechanic is a 
great deal like the American — he wants an equal 
chance in all his conflicts. He struggled against 
this; and in 1848, when almost everything was 
reorganized in France, equal representation of 
labor and capital was made the basis of the 



*For an interesting account of the workings and history of the Conseils 
des Prud'hommes, the reader is referred to "An Account of the Legislation 
Affecting Labor and the Condition of the Working Classes in France, by M. Louis 
Blanc," in the Report of the Committee on Trade Societies of Great Britain 

—London, I860. 



42 ARBITRATION. 

council. Therefore, in the law of the 9th of 
June, 1848, it was enacted: 

" That in the ' Conseils. des Prud' liommes ' the 
two conflicting interests should he represented by 
an equal number of employers and employed; 

"That this number should be neither below 
six nor above twenty-six, and should in every 
case be an even number; 

" That the 'Prud'hommes ' belonging to the 
class of employers should be elected by the em- 
ployed from a list of candidates presented by the 
employers ; 

"That the 'Prud'hommes 1 belonging to the 
class of employed should be elected by the em- 
ployers from a list of candidates presented by the 
employed ; 

" That in the event of the votes in the council 
being equally divided, the President should have 
a casting vote; 

"That the council should be alternately pre- 
sided over by an employer elected hy the em- 
ployed, and by an employed elected by the 
employers." 

The method of electing the members and the 
appointment of the presidents of the council 
were changed by the law of June, 1853, and by 
that it was left to the employers to elect their 
own representatives, and to the employed to elect 



ARBITRATION. 43 

theirs; and the appointment of the President and 
Vice-President was retained by the government. 

At present each council consists of a Presi- 
dent and Vice-President, not necessarily either 
workmen or employers, and twelve members, six 
of whom are elected by employers and six by 
workmen. This board or council has cognizance 
of all controversies arising between master- 
manufacturers and their workmen, and also be- 
tween the latter and their apprentices. Under 
the law the term of half of each class of the 
board expires every year. It is the first duty 
of this court, in case of a disagreement, to sit as 
a court of conciliation; and, if it fails to bring 
the parties to an understanding, it has the power 
to arbitrate the dispute. On all matters where 
tw r o hundred francs or under is involved, it has 
final jurisdiction, but in higher amounts there is 
a right of appeal to the Chamber of Commerce; 
in fact, every question, except that of future 
wages, is a proper one for the Conseils des Prud'- 
hommes to consider. The}^ may even consider 
this question, if the disputing parties so agree. 

It should be borne in mind that the operation 
of these councils is not strictly voluntary. The 
submission is voluntary, but the processes and 
enforcement of the awards are sanctioned by the 
penalty and powers of the law r . Yet their con- 



44 ARBITRATION. 

ciliatory feature, which so closely resembles the 

English system, is purely voluntary. 

The objectionable feature, especially to the 
American workman, is the intermeddling of the 
government in selecting the presiding officer or 
umpire. In this there is a radical departure in 
the English system of voluntary arbitration, 
where the board itself selects the umpire. There 
seems to have been a political object in the 
French government framing the law thus. M. 
Louis Blanc, in his letter " On Legislation Affect- 
ing Labor in France," says of this: "I must give 
Napoleon credit for using this weapon in such a 
manner as is calculated to wheedle into submis- 
sion to his sway the least enlightened portion 
of the working classes: for the watchword of the 
Presidents in the Conseils des Prod' homines seems 
to be, since the Empire was re-established: 'Let 
us turn the scale in favor of the operatives;' and 
I have it from workmen thoroughly acquainted 
with all that refers to their class, that whereas 
under the reign of Louis Philippe the masters 
mostly carried their causes, it is just the reverse 
which happens now, the imperial policy being to 
indemnify the workingman by some material 
advantages for the loss of those lofty ennobling 
enjoyments, which man derives from the sense 
of his self-dependence secured, and of his dignity 



ARBITRATION. 45 

unimpaired." This was the view of one of the 
most eminent agitators of the labor question in 
1860. The answer of subsequent years, in the 
marked success of the councils, has largely 
stripped the criticism of its force. 

The worth of arbitration as practiced in 
France, is testified to in the Reports of Lord 
Lyons in 1870, " Respecting the Condition of the 
Industrial Classes in Foreign Countries," the 
statement on French labor closes as follows: 

" To give an idea of the success of the Conseils 
des Prud'hommes in terminating disputes by rec- 
onciliation, it may be mentioned that in all in- 
dustrial centres in which such courts exist, they 
effect a reconciliation in ninety-five out of 100 
cases brought before them. This satisfactory 
result is easily explained. The election of the 
Prudliommes implies the confidence of the elec- 
tors in his uprightness and capacity. He natu- 
rally exercises with a kindly zeal the functions 
which have been awarded to him by his equals as 
a mark of esteem; his voice appeals with effect 
to feelings of justice and moderation^ calms the 
irritation of disputants, and diminishes exagger- 
ated pretensions. Above all, the effect of his 
good advice is not prejudiced by the professional 
pleading of counsel. At the Bureau de Judg- 
ment, as well as at the Bureau de Conciliation, 



46 ARBITRATION. 

the parties must appear in person without the 
intervention of a lawyer."' 55 ' 

The workingmen of France, through their 
organized unions, have given to their courts of 
arbitration solid and substantial encouragement 
and approval. This alone is the best certificate 
of their value. And yet how can it be otherwise 
upon the exhibit of what they have accom- 
plished? Lord Brougham, in the House of 
Lords in 1859, in a debate on strikes, said: "It 
was impossible to read the annual report of the 
Conseils des Prud'hommes without wishing to see 
some analagous provisions in our own law." His 
wish was afterwards fulfilled. 

In Belgium the French system is adopted, and 
under the same name. While the success of the 
councils in Belgium is not the same as in France, 
they have been of incalculable benefit. The 
manner of operating is practically the same in 
both countries, and the composition and juris- 
diction of the councils are similar. There is a 
difference, however, in this: the Belgian Conseils 
des Prud'hommes have a criminal jurisdiction, 

*Each council has a Bureau de Judgment and a Bureau de Conciliation. 
The Bureau de Judgment sits once a week, or once a fortnight; two-thirds of 
the council form a court. The Bureau de Conciliation, formed of one Prud'- 
homme employer and one Prudliomme workman, may be said to sit perma- 
nently, always ready to hear complaints and to transact business every day. 
—Reports Respecting the Condition of the Industrial Classes in Foreign Countries, 
London, 1870. 



ARBITRATION. 47 

which has largely impeded their progress and 
usefulness. They are clothed with a police court 
process, which, in all countries where arbitration 
has been tried, has proven detrimental to peace 
between labor and capital. There is too much 
of the machinery of the law, and not enough left 
to the voluntary spirit of the workmen and 
employers. 

In Austria, by the law of May 14, 1859, 
arbitration courts were established in every im- 
portant town and district. Their function is to 
settle all disputes respecting wages, continuance 
of work, fulfilment of contracts, and claims on 
benefit clubs and relief funds. They are com- 
posed of workmen and employers, each elected b} 7 
their own class. The workmen are paid by the 
commune for every day's sitting. The jurisdic- 
tion of the arbitration courts extends to the usual 
subjects of dispute in the trades. Their awards 
have the force and effect of judgments of courts. 
Legal and compulsory process can be issued for 
the purposes of investigation. 

The uniform history of arbitration in France, 
Austria, and Belgium has been that of elevation 
of labor. While the lot of the workingman in 
those countries in no way approaches the inde- 
pendence and position of his American brother, 
it is far ahead of what it might be; yes, what it 



48 ARBITRATION. 

has been, when he depended on the wager of 
striking for a remedy for his wrongs. In Austria 
these courts are the real and only methods of the 
workingman's defense. The law makes strikes 
and lock-outs illegal. Combinations by manu- 
facturers and all other employers, to control trade 
or lower wages, are made penal offenses. The 
same is true of combinations of workmen, to 
organize strikes or raise wages. Hence the neces- 
sity and advantage of their arbitration courts. 
But, as was before remarked, there is too much 
governmental control to suit the American work- 
man. Such courts would not operate in this 
country, or even in England, but their history is 
a step in the progressive march of labor to the 
forum of judgment and reason. They are, doubt- 
less, the best institutions for the countries in 
which they exist. And they prove that the 
verdict of an open and fair trial is preferable to a 
conquest wrung from unwilling hands, ofttimes 
at fearful cost. 



CHAPTER IV. 



ANTHONY J. MUNDELLA, THE FOUNDER 
OF ENGLISH ARBITRATION. 



THE life of Anthony John Mundella, dis- 
tinguished by Henry Crompton as " the 
inventor of systematic industrial concilia- 
tion," is an appropriate and necessary introduc- 
tion to the history of voluntary arbitration in 
England. 

His career in the English Parliament, as the 
representative of Sheffield, which commenced in 
1868, stamped him as a radical champion of the 
rights of labor. 

He is of half Italian and half English an- 
cestry, and was born at Leicester in 1825. A 
scion of that wide nobility — the common people, 
his whole life is an index of his origin. He com- 
menced life as a " printer's devil," but through 
its early stages accumulated by indefatigable 
industry a valuable education. At the age of 
eleven years he was apprenticed to the hosiery 

4 



50 ARBITRATION. 

trade, in which he remained until his eighteenth 
year. His business capacity and intelligence 
attracted the attention of his employers, and in 
his nineteenth year he was engaged as manager 
of a large cotton trade enterprise. When twenty- 
three years of age, at Nottingham he became 
partner in one of the largest hosiery firms in 
England, Hone, Mundella & Co. In this capacity 
he was the employer of three thousand working- 
men. It was here that he displayed that broad 
Christianity and wise economy which have made 
his name a lasting one in the history of British 
industry. 

In 1860 he conceived and put into practical 
operation the first attempt at voluntary arbitra- 
tion in England. The hosiery trade at that time 
was paralyzed and torn with industrial strifes. 
Employers and workingmen were at u swords' 
points," and the only mutuality between them 
was that of distrust and malevolence. The 
season of eleven weeks was rife with strikes and 
lock-outs ; and it was out of this state of affairs 
that the Nottingham Board of Arbitration and 
Conciliation sprung up. After considering the 
serious condition of trade and industry, Mr. 
Mundella evolved a remedy. Says he, in his 
testimony before the Trades Union's Commission 
in 1867: "I had heard of the Conseils des Prud'- 



ARBITRATION. 51 

hommes in France; and with one or two others I 
built up a scheme in my imagination of what I 
thought might be done to get a good under- 
standing with our men, and regulate wages." 

The employers held a meeting, and appointed 
a conference committee of three from their num- 
ber to meet with the workingmen. 

The result is given in Mr. Mundella's own 
way: "We three met perhaps a dozen leaders 
of the trades union, and we consulted with these 
men ; told them that the present plan was a bad 
one, that it seemed to us that they took every 
advantage of us when we had a demand, and we 
took every advantage of them when trade was 
bad, and it was a system mutually predatory. 
And there is no doubt that it was so; we pressed 
down the price as low as we could, and they 
pressed up the price as high as they could. This 
often caused a strike in pressing it down, and a 
strike in getting it up; and these strikes were 
most ruinous and injurious to all parties, because, 
when we might have been supplying our cus- 
tomers, our machinery was idle; and we suggested 
whether Ave could not try some better scheme. 
Well, the men were very suspicious at first; 
indeed, it is impossible to describe to you how 
suspiciously we looked at each other. Some 
of the manufacturers also deprecated our pro- 



52 ARBITRATION. 

ceedings, and said we were degrading them and 
humiliating them, and so on. However, we had 
some ideas of our own, and we went on with 
them: and we sketched out what we called a 
Board of Arbitration and Conciliation." 

Thus was instituted the first voluntary tribu- 
nal of trade disputes in England, and it became 
known as " The Board of Arbitration and Concil- 
iation in the Glove and Hosiery Trade." It held 
its first meeting at Nottingham, December 3, 
1860, and was a harbinger of many others. 

The reign of peace was a reign of success. 
Ten years later, in the Contemporary Review. Mr. 
Mundella reviews his work as follows: " Since the 
27th of September, 1860, there has not been a 
bill of any kind issued. Strikes are at an end, 
also. Levies to sustain them are unknown: and 
one shilling a year from each member suffices to 
pay all expenses. This — not a farthing of which 
comes out of the pocket of their masters — is 
equivalent to a large advance of wages. I have 
inspected the balance sheet of a trades union 
of ten thousand three hundred men. and I found 
the expenditures for thirteen months to amount 
to less than one hundred pounds." 

The success of the Nottingham arbitration 
attracted the attention of the public: and it was 
recognized that at least one step had been taken 



ARBITRATION. 53 

for the abolition of labor strikes and struggles. 
Mr. Mundella received invitations from many 
towns, notably Sheffield, to lecture upon his 
system of voluntary arbitration. No other city 
in England had suffered in her trade so much 
from trade disputes as Sheffield. Her working 
classes and employers hailed with cheer this 
application of new principles to industry. They 
were tired of the many fruitless fights in which 
they had engaged. And they not only gladly 
listened to the new gospel of Mundella, but in 
1868 they demanded that he stand as one of their 
candidates for Parliament. This he did, and was 
elected, running largely " ahead of his ticket." 

He entered Parliament representing the work- 
ingmen of Sheffield, yet clothed in his own 
modesty. And right faithfully in his whole 
political life has he stood by the interests of his 
constituents. By the thoroughness and practi- 
cality of his speeches, he soon became an ac- 
knowledged leader. His speech on the Education 
Bill was the most important in the debate, so 
says Mr. Gladstone. It ought to have been. Mr. 
Mundella had investigated by personal examina- 
tion the school systems of the United States, 
Germany, Switzerland, and Holland. In his 
advanced and honored position he never forgot 
the condition of his fellow toilers whom he had 



54 ARBITRATION. 

left behind. He worked indefatigably night and 
day to repeal the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 
which bore heavily and unjustly upon workmen. 
The Factory Nine Hour Bill had no stronger 
advocate and friend in all Parliament. To Mr. 
Mundella, more than any other one man, can be 
credited the repeal of the former and the passage 
of the latter. 

If a comparison should be wanted in Ameri- 
can public life for Mr. Mundella, no character 
would be better suited for that purpose than 
Thaddeus Stevens. The eminent Sheffield Lib- 
eral possesses all the tenacity and stubborn con- 
scientiousness of the Pennsylvania Commoner. 
The fealty of Mundella to the interests of the 
common people has made him one of their 
tribunes. His position as the father of volun- 
tary arbitration has made him a benefactor to the 
laboring classes. And they knew it, too, for right 
royally have they stood by him in sustaining his 
Parliamentary career. The motive which has 
prompted him to place so much confidence in the 
workingman when dealing with his employer, 
seems to control his political life. His speech at 
Newcastle-on-Tyne, in November, 1884, during 
the Franchise Bill agitation, was worthy of the 
primest American. "Enfranchise the people; 
and after you have enfranchised the people, they 



A KBIT RATION. 55 

themselves are the best judges in what manner 
they shall use their power." 

Mr. Mundella, in his public career, has given 
his sympathy to the class from which he sprung; 
at the same time he strongly discountenances any 
preaching of the doctrine of antagonism between 
capital and labor. He is emphatically a peace 
advocate in labor struggles. By his own life and 
experience he has demonstrated that violent 
disputes between employer and workmen can 
readily be dispensed with when both parties 
exercise good judgment and fair play. 



CHAPTER V, 



RISE AND DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH 
INDUSTRIAL ARBITRATION. 



TO the American student of industrial arbi- 
tration, the history of English labor forms 
the starting point for all theories, plans, 
and argument concerning it. While the social 
and political condition of working classes in 
England in no way approaches that of the Amer- 
ican workingman, there is no other country of 
Europe, at the present time, where capital and 
labor are nearer on a level. But it has been a 
long and bitter struggle to bring about this condi- 
tion. English capital has been a severe task- 
master. Cruel, powerful, and enslaving methods 
have been its most common weapons; and it has 
only been within the past score of years that 
labor has received even a portion of its dues, and 
then only has it been by that agitation which has 
summoned capital to the bar of public opinion to 
hear the claims and petitions of the wageworkers. 



ARBITRATION. 57 

By the power of co-operation, organization, and 
arbitration, a repetition of the tyranny of past 
years has been made impossible. 

To read of the rise and development of the 
principle of arbitration in England, is necessary 
to a jnst appreciation of the principle itself. To 
this end it is my purpose to present a succinct 
statement of its progress. Mr. Weeks' Report 
has been of much assistance in giving the present 
relationship of voluntary arbitration and concili- 
ation to labor; it is invaluable in studying this 
question. 

The beginning of the era of peace in the trade 
disputes of English industry may be fixed in the 
year 1860. It was in that year that Mr. Mundella 
first made practical the theory of settling a labor 
difficulty without a strike or a lock-out. The 
hosiery and glove trade, with which he had been 
long connected, is concentrated in Nottingham 
and immediate vicinity. For years, almost cent- 
uries, the struggles of violence were common 
events between employers and employed. A not 
unusual weapon of retaliation used by the work- 
ingmen was to destroy the machinery of the 
manufacturer. This violence, growing out of the 
disputes of labor and capital, made it necessary 
for Parliament to punish machine breaking with 
death. In the year 1816 six persons suffered the 



58 ARBITRATION. 

death penalty for this offense. From 1710, espe- 
cially, up to 1860, the condition of the relations 
of labor and capital was that of contending 
military forces. These were times of peace: but 
these were seasons of truce rather than of good 
feeling. In 1860 there were three strikes in the 
hosiery trade: and out of the state of affairs 
resulting from these conflicts Mr. Mundella con- 
ceiyed. and carried into practical operation, his 
" Board of Arbitration and Conciliation in the 
Gloye and Hosiery Trade," mentioned in the 
preceding chapter. 

The rules adopted by his board thus created, 
are a model of all that is desired in a peaceful 
adjustment of disputes. They haye been satis- 
factory from the first, and haye scarcely been 
amended at all since their adoption. I deem 
them of sufficient historical importance in this 
matter of arbitration, to be given to the reader 
entire, as the first successful basis for voluntary 
arbitration in England. 

1. That a board of trade be formed, to be 
styled " The Board of Arbitration and Concilia- 
tion for the Hosiery and Glove Branches." 

2. That the object of said board shall be to 
arbitrate on any questions relating to wages that 
may be referred to it from time to time by the 
employers or operatives, and by conciliatory 



ARBITRATION. 59 

means to interpose its influence to put an end to 
any disputes that may arise. 

3. The board to consist of eleven manu- 
facturers and eleven operatives. The operatives 
to be elected by a meeting of the respective 
branches. The manufacturers to be elected by a 
public meeting of their own body. The whole 
of the deputies to serve for one year, and to be 
eligible for re-election. The new council to 
be elected in the month of January, in each 
year. 

4. That each delegate attend the board with 
full powers from his own branch, and that the 
decision of the board shall be considered binding 
upon the branch he represents. 

5. That a committee of inquiry, consisting 
of four members of the board, shall inquire into 
any cases referred to it by the secretaries. Such 
committee to use its influence in the settlement 
of disputes. If unable amicably to adjust the 
business referred to it, it shall be remitted to the 
board for settlement; but in no case shall the 
committee make any award. The committee to 
be appointed annually. 

6. That the board shall, at its annual meet- 
ing, elect a President, Vice-President, and two 
Secretaries, who shall continue in office one year, 
and be eligible for re-election. 



60 ARBITRATION. 

7. That the board shall meet for the trans- 
action of business once a quarter; viz., the first 
Monday in January, April, July, and October; 
but on a requisition to the President, signed by 
three members of the board, specifying the nature 
of the business to be transacted, he shall, within 
seven days, convene a meeting of its members. 
The circular calling such meeting shall specify 
the nature of the business for consideration, pro- 
vided that such business has first been submitted 
to the committee of inquiry, and left undecided 
by them. 

8. That all complaints submitted to the board 
for their investigation be submitted in writing, 
stating, as clearly as possible, the nature of the 
grievance complained of; such statement to be 
sent at least one week prior to the board meeting. 

9. That, prior to any advance or reduction in 
the rate of wages being considered by the board, 
a month's notice shall be given in writing to the 
Secretary, that such change is desired. 

10. That the President shall preside over the 
meetings of the board, and, in his absence, the 
Vice-President; in the absence of both President 
and Vice-President, a Chairman shall be elected 
by a majority present. The Chairman to have a 
vote, and in case of members being equal, the 
Chairman to have the casting vote. 



ARBITRATION. 61 

11. That any expense incurred by this board 
be borne equally by the operatives and employers. 

12. That no alteration or addition be made 
to these rules, except at a quarterly meeting, or a 
special meeting convened for the purpose. Notice 
of any proposed alteration shall be given in 
writing one month previous to such meetings. 

These rules, it will be observed, embraced the 
principle of conciliation as well as arbitration. 
The "committee of inquiry" of section 5, were 
conciliators; their mission was similar to the 
Bureau de Conciliation of the Conseils des Prud'- 
hommes. The presiding officer gave the casting 
vote in case of a tie; but that was changed after- 
wards so as to leave the casting vote in the hands 
of an umpire, who was selected from outside the 
board by the members, when they failed to agree 
among themselves. 

While this Nottingham board was the first 
successful permanent and systematic board of 
arbitration in England, it must be said that 
settlements in trade disputes had been made prior 
to this; but most of the boards of these instances 
were simply temporary committees for the special 
dispute. Yet there were arbitration boards com- 
posed of workmen and employers in many trades, 
especially the Scottish. The Scottish Miners' 
Association was founded in 1852. The object was 



ARBITRATI 

the protection of miners' rights and privileges. 
Their rules provided that " if at any time the 

k or workmen therein find it necessary to 
strike for an advance of wages, or from any other 
cause, the district committee shall refer the matter 
to a working arbitration." The rules are silent 
s to the method of arbitrating. The most 
sensible and conciliatory union of thirty years 
a _ was that of the Glasgow Tailors. That trade 
has been remarkably free from strikes. I take 
my view from their reports up to l v 57. Nearer 

the NottiDgham system of arbitration than 

any other trade, seems the board of arbitrators 

of the Glasgow tailors. Their admirable pro- 

ns foi settling disputes are given in rules 11 

and 21 of the union. These are as follows: 

"This Society being ^.-tablished upon princi- 
ples of strict justice, having for its object the 

action and furtherance of the interests of 

h employers and employed, it is desirable that 
all disputes which may arise between them 
should be submitted to arbitration, as the most 
sj eedy and equitable way of arriving at a con- 
clusion: and it shall be the constant aim of the 
Society tc see that this desire be. as far as practi- 
cable, carried out. * * * In the event of any 
dispute arising, the men shall first reason the 
matter with the employer; and. if unsuccessful. 



ARBITRATION. 63 

they shall immediately thereafter inform the 
committee of the same, who will use their best 
endeavors to bring about an amicable adjustment 
of the ease. * * * The arbiters shall consist 
of an equal number of employers and employed, 
whose decision shall be final, the disputants first 
subscribing a minute of submission, binding 
themselves to abide by the same, or an agreement 
binding them to enter into a regular submission 
when required, containing the usual clauses." 

The Glasgow potters, up to 1860, were remark- 
ably free from strikes. The last general strike 
was in 1836, and was a terrible ordeal for manu- 
facturers and workmen, and long recollected by 
the latter with dread. From reports to the 
" National Association for the Promotion of 
Science," which held its Fourth Annual Meeting 
at Glasgow, in 1860, it is found that one of the 
main causes of the absence of strikes in the 
" potteries " is the yearly agreement between 
workmen and employers as to arbitration. The 
clause is as follows: "If any dispute arise be- 
tween the parties as to the prices or wages to be 
paid by virtue of such agreement, the dispute 
shall be referred to an arbitration board of six 
persons, to consist of three manufacturers chosen 
by the masters, and three working potters elected 
by the workingmen." The success of this method 



64 ARBITRATION. 

can be seen from the report to the Association: 
"This arbitration clause has been much tried, 
and has worked most successfully in ninety out 
of one hundred cases. "* In the long series of 
struggles on labor disputes prior to 1860, we find 
many instances of efforts at arbitration. I have 
cited the foregoing as examples. The workmen 
in a majority of cates favored a submission to 
arbiters, thus showing a faith in the justice of 
their claims. To the discredit of the masters, 
they refused to submit their position to any such 
investigation. 

All this arbitration referred to was voluntary. 
It was resorted to through the mutual action 
of the employers and employed. As far as it was 
tried it was satisfactory. The only instances of 
successful settlements have always been of a 
voluntary nature. 

It was but natural that the agitation of such a 
question should attract the attention of legis- 
lators and statesmen, and it was not long before 
a bill was introduced into Parliament providing 
for the establishment of tribunals to try labor 
disputes. Mr. Mackinnon, M. P., in 1859 pre- 
sented his " Bill for the Establishment of Courts 
of Conciliation for the Adjustment of Differences 

* See Report of the Committee on Trades Societies; Proceedings of National 
Association for the Promotion of Social Science.— London, 1860. 



ARBITRATION. 05 

between Masters and Operatives." This provided 
for a system of arbitration, but it was permissive 
or voluntary as to the erection of such. And, 
strange as it may appear in the light of subse- 
quent history, the trade combinations of Sheffield 
strenuously opposed its passage as being objec- 
tionable, because its courts were voluntary and 
not compulsory. When we reflect that afterwards 
Parliament passed laws providing for legal arbi- 
tration, and that under them no arbitration has 
ever taken place, it only shows the fluctuating 
view workmen often take of their position. 

The Mackinnon Bill never passed. It w r as 
objected to in the House of Lords; and thus the 
first attempt to create a legal board to adjudicate 
trade disputes in England failed. While the bill 
was pending, and while the Social Science Con- 
gress was in session at Glasgow expressing grave 
doubts as to practical arbitration, Mr. Mundella 
was quietly operating his own splendid method. 

The Wolverhampton system of arbitration 
and conciliation, so called on account of its first 
application at that place, was adopted in the 
building trades there about three years after the 
Nottingham system was originated. Judge 
Rupert Kettle, of Worcestershire, was the advo- 
cate and principal supporter of this method of 
arbitration, and he has for years been a zealous 

5 



66 ARBITRATION. 

and able advocate of this peaceful contest of 
labor and capital. 

The building trades of Wolverhampton, like 
all the rest of English trades up to the intro- 
duction of arbitration, had been subject to con- 
troversies as to wages and customs, which in- 
variably resulted in strikes and lock-outs. The 
last strike, which continued seventeen weeks, was 
in 1863, and it crippled the industries of the 
town and vicinity very seriously. Capital was 
timid and feared to invest; labor was sullen and 
seeking revenge. The strike finally terminated, 
but signs of dissatisfaction and further trouble 
were apparent at the beginning of the building 
season of 1864. The citizens and tradesmen of 
Wolverhampton, through the Mayor, finally called 
a meeting of the workmen and employers, to 
take into consideration the feasibility of settling 
their disputes otherwise than through the medium 
of a strike. The result of this meeting, which 
was held on the 14th of March, 1864, was that 
the carpenters appointed six delegates to meet 
with six delegates of the employers, for the pur- 
pose of settling the impending difficulties. A 
week afterwards these twelve delegates met and 
selected an umpire, who should have the deciding 
vote in case of a tie on the questions before them. 
The umpire chosen was Mr. Kettle, who was, to 



ARBITRATION. 07 

quote from one who knows him well, " remarkable 
for very vigorous analysis and skilful unravelling 
of complicated facts." His judicial temperament 
and well known integrity inspired the disputing 
parties with confidence in his adaptability to the 
position. Briefly stated, the arbitration worked 
to a charm. The award of the board was cheer- 
fully accepted by masters and men; and the loss 
of time, money, and contentment incumbent upon 
every strike was averted to the great joy of all 
concerned. The Wolverhampton method was 
worked out and systematized by Judge Kettle 
without being acquainted with the features of Mr. 
Mundella's Nottingham plan. It had some points 
superior to the latter. For instance, one of the 
distinguishing articles of Judge Kettle's method 
was to select the umpire outside of the board. 
He was a permanent standing arbitrator. This 
was a decided advantage. A judge selected in 
time of harmony will have the confidence of the 
disputants much more than if he was selected 
during a pending discussion. Judge Kettle's 
board formed a set of rules for each working 
establishment, and compliance with these rules 
was the essence of the contract of hiring. A 
radical weakness of the Wolverhampton method 
was the absence of the conciliation feature in the 
board. Upon the slightest dispute concerning 



68 ARBITRATION. 

the rules, wages, or other matter, it was necessary 
for the entire board to assemble and pass upon 
the matter in dispute formally. It can be readily 
seen that one of the most effective instruments 
for peace between employer and employed, is the 
conciliatory feature of arbitration. The powers 
of conciliation, however, were afterwards added, 
and. according to Judge Kettle, have been "found 
in practice more useful than the arbitration 
rule." 

Both of these systems, the Nottingham and 
Wolverhampton, advocated by Mr. Mundella and 
Judge Kettle respectively, have formed the basis 
for all the voluntary arbitration now in force in 
England. The spirit of these systems has spread: 
and now in the most important and wide-spread 
industries of that country strikes are a relic of .a 
past barbaric era. If they are not entirely 
abandoned, they are. at least, rarely heard of. 

The iron industry of England is its staff of 
industrial life. For years the mill workers and 
miners were so oppressed by the ironmasters that 
a strike in an iron district was almost a civil war. 
It meant lawlessness, vandalism, bloodshed, and 
misery. This was especially so in the Xorth of 
England iron trade, to which I have before 
referred. For sixteen years the disputes of labor 
and capital in the rolling mills of England have 



ARBITRATION. 69 

been settled by arbitration, and it has been an 
era remarkably free from strikes. The board of 
arbitration for the North of England iron busi- 
ness was, as all efforts of this kind usually are, 
the outgrowth of a strike. It was formed on 
March 22, 1869. It is a permanent institution, 
and has the usual equal representation of em- 
ployers and employed, as well as the conciliation 
committee taken from the members of the board; 
in truth, arbitration in its just and full applica- 
tion must necessarily be about alike in all systems 
and trades. Speaking of this board, Mr. Weeks, 
in his report, says: "At the close of 1875, it 
represented thirty-five works and 13,000 sub- 
scribed operatives. These works had 1,913 pud- 
dling furnaces — more than all Pennsylvania, and 
half as many as the entire United States. During 
the year 1875 the standing committee investigated 
forty disputes. Since its organization there have 
been eight or nine arbitrations on the general 
questions of wages, and scores of references in 
regard to special adjustment of wages at partic- 
ular works." The awards of the board from 1869 
to 1874 in fixing wages have been freely and 
honorably accepted without a single repudiation; 
and this has been uniform, both in the decrease 
and the increase of wages. The justice and 
necessity of a change of wages must have been 



70 ARBITRATION. 

very apparent to the board before an alteration 
would be decided upon. 

A similar board was organized in the South 
Staffordshire iron business, but it did not prove 
as effectual for good as that of the North of 
England. This was owing to a dispute between 
trade unionists and outsiders. The labor parties 
represented undertook to deny admission to the 
board of non-unionists, and as a result it failed. 
The right principle in arbitration makes no dis- 
tinction between labor of any kind; if that is not 
done, and the formation of the arbitration tribu- 
nal is to be controlled by trade unions, it ceases 
to have that feature of independent justice neces- 
sary to success. Since the failure of the first 
attempt on a trade union basis, there was organ- 
ized in 1875 "The South Staffordshire Iron Trade 
Conciliation Board,' 1 with the objectionable points 
of the old board left out. It has operated with 
success. In October, 1878, the market required 
the usual reduction of wages, which the board 
upon careful examination decreed. The award, 
although bearing hard on the workmen, was con- 
scientiously — -of course not cheerfully — abided 
by. And prior to and since that time, there were 
the usual reductions and increase of wages fol- 
lowing the fluctuations of the market. I mention 
these large reductions of wages because they have 



ARBITRATION. 71 

been the motive powers of causing strikes in the 
past history of English labor. At the present, in 
the manufacturing regions of England where 
these boards of arbitration are in vogue, the 
struggle of labor against capital is made before 
these tribunals; it is a struggle of reason and 
sense. And although it is sometimes decided 
against the workmen, the award is acquiesced 
in. Advantages are often gained by both parties 
that could never be realized from a strike or 
lock-out. 

In the English coal regions of Northumber- 
land and Durham, and in the South Wales dis- 
tricts, the peaceful method of settling trade 
disputes has been applied with much success. 
Attempts at arbitration have been made in other 
districts, with not very brilliant results. These 
attempts were made frequently before the syste- 
matic arbitration now adopted came into vogue. 
In most of these instances efforts at arbitration 
have been made by the men, and as often refused 
by the operators. Notably in the West Yorkshire 
coal strike and lock-out as far back as 1858, when 
the miners offered to submit to arbitration, and 
the employers not only declined, but refused an 
interview to the miners' representatives. And in 
the strike of the Scottish miners the same thing 
was done. Prior to 1873 the rejected efforts at 



72 ARBITRATION. 

arbitration in the coal trade were caused by the 
mine owners and masters. But there has been a 
vast improvement in the public sentiment of 
operators on this question within recent years. 
Mr. Weeks reports that in the Northumberland 
coal region, wages and other matters of dispute 
have been settled by arbitration. Since 1873, 
under the promotion of Judge Kettle, a syste- 
matic board has been in operation. Mining 
customs are the principal subjects of discussion 
next to wages. A very successful arbitration was 
accomplished in the Northumberland district in 
1877. In May of that year the operatives received 
notice from their employers that there would be a 
reduction of wages, and that they would no longer 
be allowed a free house and free coal. The result 
was, twelve thousand out of fourteen thousand 
miners struck. They were very bitterly opposed 
to arbitration, and withdrew their confidence from 
such of their leaders as favored it. Afterwards 
the parties agreed to arbitrate, and the strike was 
broken by the award of a board of arbitration, 
over which a prominent member of Parliament 
presided as umpire. In Durham, and other parts 
of England, there have been arbitrations in the 
coal trade which have proved boons to the work- 
men. A careful examination of the reports on 
the results of the trade tribunals to try industrial 



ARBITRATION. 73 

disputes in this branch of English labor, shows 
some queer facts.* In some quarters it seems 
that the intellectual capacity of the workmen is 
not yet high enough to abandon the brutal 
methods of a strike. Where they have arbi- 
trated, it is with reluctance that they have 
accepted awards; in some instances they have 
openly repudiated them. But it can be truth- 
fully said, however, that these cases have been 
rare. 

In many other instances the system of arbi- 
tration and conciliation has been successfully 
applied. The lace trade of Nottingham is con- 
trolled by a board formed on the plan of the 
hosiery trade at the same place. It is a per- 
manent court of arbitration, and has met the 
warmest expectations of its founders. The 
moving sentiment among the trade unions, as 

*In South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire Mr. Mundella has arbitrated 
a number of disputes the present year. At Barnsly an eight months' strike 
was settled by Mr. Whitewell and Mr. Mundella. There have been successful 
arbitrations in the coal trade at Ashton, Oldham, North Staffordshire, Cleve- 
land, North of England, and Lancashire. In South Staffordshire a sliding 
scale was adopted in 1874. but its working was not satisfactory, owing to a 
decline in coal being much greater than was expected. At Radstock there 
have been two awards, one by Mr. Mundella and the other by Mr. Thomas 
Hughes, M. P. In North Wales there have been several arbitrations. In all 
these cases there has seemed to be an earnest desire on the part of the leaders 
of the unions to hold men to the awards, telling them that they were bound 
in honor, and threatening to withdraw from their positions if the men were 
false to their word. The Welsh colliers are rough, uneducated men, however, 
and have forgotten honor and interest, and rejected awards that have been 
made; and at present arbitration is not practiced in this district.— Weeks' 
Report on English Arbitration, December, 1878. 



74 ARBITRATION. 

well as the capitalists, is that the time of strikes 
is past. Their conclusions are being proved by 
the fact, that every trade union in England 
indorses arbitration, and that capital is sub- 
mitting to trial at the tribunals where labor has 
an equal voice with its employer.* 

Arbitration in England that has been written 
of herein has been purely voluntary arbitration. 
The systems advocated and established by Mr. 
Mundella and Judge Kettle are extra statutory. 
But within a few years acts have been passed 
which have been intended to further and aid 
voluntary arbitration. The first of these, by 
Lord St. Leonards, was passed in 1867. It 
operates only when called into being by the 
Justice of the Peace, and there is no permanency 
in the board so created. Unlike the Mackinnon 
Bill of J 859, it is compulsory. No cases of arbi- 
tration have been reported under the act, and it 
is practically obsolete. The law of 1872, by Mr. 
Mundella, known as "The Arbitration (Masters 
and Workmen) Act, 1872," is practically an effort 
to enforce the awards arrived at by voluntary 
arbitration, and makes binding on all parties the 
agreements entered into by them. In the " Mem- 
orandum " the uses of the act are summarized, 
which I quote as follows: 

*See Appendix I. 



ARBITRATION. 75 

" 1. To provide the most simple machinery 
for a binding submission to arbitration, and for 
the proceedings therein. 

li 2. To extend facilities of arbitration to 
questions of wages, hours, and other conditions 
of labor, also to all the numerous and important 
matters which may otherwise have to be de- 
termined by justice under the provisions of the 
Master and Servant Act of 1867. 

" 3. To provide for submission to arbitration 
of future disputes by anticipation, without waiting 
till the time when a dispute has actually arisen, 
and the parties are too much excited to agree 
upon arbitrators." 

I infer from the expressions of the press, and 
from the experience of those interested, that the 
cause of arbitration in England has been but 
little advanced by Parliamentary legislation. 
That most powerful of all statutes, the public 
sentiment of the working people, has given it its 
present firm and advanced position. The view 
of Professor Jevons, that arbitration should be 
free from the law and lawyers, seems to be the 
opinion of the practical adherents of voluntary 
arbitration. I am not certain but that they are 
correct. Not that the " law or lawyers" will be 
of any injury, but in the large majority of cases 
of arbitration between capital and labor, both 



76 ARBITRATION. 

parties are usually execution-proof. It deals 
purely with the acts of men ; and no law can be 
passed to compel men to do something they do 
not want to do. In voluntary arbitration the 
force of honor and sentiment, public and private, 
is the only writ that can execute an award. 

The history of English voluntary arbitration 
is full of lessons to the American workingman. 
It appeals to all the self-interest as well as the 
manhood of the American manufacturer. The 
experience of the past quarter of a century has 
demonstrated that all the difficulties which arise 
between capital and labor are capable of a just 
and inexpensive solution. That under the in- 
fluence of a sentiment which opposes strikes, and 
favors a fair submission to arbitration, the social, 
political, and financial condition of the employer 
is far advanced above what it was thirty years 
ago. 



CHAPTER VI. 



VOLUNTARY ARBITRATION IN THE UNI 
TED STATES. 



FIFTEEN years ago the English representa- 
tive at Washington, in a report to his own 
government on the condition of labor in 
this country, wrote as follows: 

"There are few countries in which the work- 
ingman is held in such repute as in the United 
States of America. 

"The laboring classes may be said to embrace 
the entire American nation. 

" Every man works for a living, follows a 
profession, or is engaged either in mercantile or 
industrial pursuits. 

"The prosecution of the humblest calling acts 
as no bar to promotion in the social scale. 

" The lowly citizen of to-day may aspire to 
Presidential honors to-morrow."* 

* Reports Respecting the Condition of the Industrial Classes in Foreign 
Countries. Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Her Majesty's Com- 
mand.— London, 1870. 



7 8 ARBITRATION. 

The most intense American could not state 
more happily the truth concerning our people in 
a less number of propositions. The expression 
that the American nation is one of laborers is 
emphatically true. There is no permanent class 
in this country but the laboring class. AH our 
people derive their origin from workers of muscle 
and brain — from those who in years gone by 
cleared away the forests, and planted in virgin 
soil the seeds of what has grown to be a tremen- 
dous testimony to human genius and skill 
from those of later growth and arrival, who have 
brought from other lands elements of strength 
that have helped to build up our nationality. It 
is true that wealth and capital have grown up 
among this great people, but they came from labor 
and labor's earnings. No royal road to position, 
wealth, or power is found in this republic, where 
every man is the peer of his brother. The only 
aristocracy that will stand is the aristocracy of 
intellect. The voice of labor, when it sends forth 
its demands in the "parliament of man. ,, is just 
as powerful as the capital for which it works. 
When it fails to obtain the rights due it under 
justice and the law, the fault is not with the 
people. There is no country in the world where 
there is less excuse for the workingman laboring 
under unjust disadvantages than in the United 



ARBITRATION. 79 

States. Here, as a part and factor of the " powers 
that be/' he should be the last to allow himself to 
be deprived of his rights. 

And yet we find, as in the old world, whenever 
there is a clash between money and muscle, the 
latter is generally worsted. This is not due in 
any manner to our laws, sentiment, or institu- 
tions, but rather to a failure of the methods 
adopted by organized labor in its conflicts with 
capital. The law which in the wager of battle 
makes a victor of the stronger, gives capital the 
advantage in a mere struggle for vantage ground 
where endurance and money are the only weapons 
used. As long as American labor has no other 
way by which it can enforce its claims but by 
strikes, just so long will it be at the complete 
mercy of capital. And as long as the manu- 
facturer, mine operator, and mill owner refuse to 
listen to the argument of labor, thus long will 
they find an enemy in the workingman. 

Capital must learn to live not for profit alone, 
but should remember that labor is its handmaid, 
and profit at the unjust expense of the employed 
is a moral as well as a social crime. Labor has 
much to learn also: the first is, that to struggle 
with capital when the choice of weapons is left to 
the latter, is a folly and will always be a failure. 
Labor, by the equity of humanity, should be 



80 ARBITRATION. 

willing to accept decreased wages with decreased 
profits, and the employer should be equally just 
by paying increased wages with increased profits, 
provided always that the increase or decrease 
of "profits is not the result of unhealthy competi- 
tion. Just and safe as this method may appear, 
it never enters into the relationship of employer 
and employed. This consideration by the 
workers of labor and capital, with the advan- 
tages and depressions of trade, will have its 
fullest and fairest application under a system of 
arbitration. 

The principle of appealing to the judgment, 
intelligence, and fair play of a tribunal, without 
the ceremony or technicalities of the courts, is 
peculiarly adapted to the American workingman. 
And it is strange that a greater number of peace- 
ful settlements of trade disputes in this manner 
has not been made. One reason is that there is 
being sowed almost daily seeds of poison among 
the American working classes. Those professional 
labor agitators who preach that there is an eternal 
and irrepressible antipathy between capital and 
labor, are the worst enemies of arbitration and 
the workingman. In the same ranks, and with 
the same doctrine, is the Anarchist, the Socialist, 
and the Communist — he of whom Ebenezer 
Elliott, the Corn Law rhymer, satirically sung: 



ARBITRATION. 81 

" What is a Communist? One who hath yearnings 
For equal division of unequal earnings; 
Idler or bungler, or both, he is willing 
To fork out his penny and pocket your shilling." 

Their wild Utopian schemes are seductive 
beside the plain business proposition of compro- 
mise. They urge strikes when there is no ground 
for differences beyond sentimentalism, and they 
find followers too. There is a romance and 
daring similar to war, that makes strikes par- 
tially seductive. They are " fighting capital," a 
shibboleth which, in the mouth of a workingman 
who never works, is a powerful incentive to his 
brother who toils and sweats for his bread, to 
conjure up his wrongs and "go out." The 
liberty of speech, of press,- and of action have 
all been exhausted in sustaining strikes, and 
arbitration in its systematic character, as applied 
in England, has had but a limited history in the 
United States. In this omission the injury has 
been to the industrious labor, which has paid 
dearly for it. 

The idea of making an effort for a peaceful 
solution of our disagreements is almost intuitive 
to an intelligent man. The principle of co- 
operation for self-protection is equally so. And 
every feeling of confidence in the justness of our 
cause would lead us to submit our disputes to 



82 ARBITRATION. 

some honest tribunal, rather than to the dan- 
gerous and uncertain wager of battle or physical 
endurance. That principle works broader and 
better in this country than in England: we are 
emphatically a peaceful court-settling people. 
The first instinct of an American is to co-operate 
with his fellows, when all desire the same end: 
his next is to submit to the will of the majority 
or the court. 

The history of industrial arbitration in the 
United States is very short. There has been no 
general effort towards the establishment of per- 
manent and systematic boards of voluntary arbi- 
tration, but the principle shows itself in various 
trades and under various circumstances. For 
years there has existed in New York a society 
called the Working Woman's Protective Union. 
Its object is "to stand between the woman who 
unaided is battling in the world for a living, and 
those who would defraud her of what she has 
honestly earned; to encourage and sustain her in 
this desire to support herself and others who may 
be dependent upon her. and further to open up 
new fields of labor and thus relieve those depart- 
ments oi industry now overcrowded.'' It has no 
arbitrative functions, but I refer to it as an 
instance of a powerful mediator between employer 
and employed. It has uniformly prevented 



ARBITRATION. 83 

strikes and lock-outs by referring, in the name 
of the working woman, to the courts for pro- 
tection; and, as a result, this method of arbitra- 
tion, forced and imperfect as it is, has settled 
within sixteen years 1,600 disputes, and $30,000 
have been recovered from employers who sought 
to impose upon their hands, and this, too, with- 
out the cost of a cent to the women themselves. 
Its official statements claim that the greatest 
accomplishment of the Protective Union has 
been the simple fact of its existence. The 
knowledge of the working women and their 
employers, that there was a place of protective 
resort where fair play could be had, dissipated 
again and again the possibilities of conflict and 
wrong. 

The first and most notable instance of perma- 
nent and systematic voluntary arbitration in the 
United States is that connected with the . cigar 
manufactory of Straiton & Storm, of New York 
City. This establishment, employing over two > 
thousand workmen, has since 1879 settled all its 
disputes with its employes through a board of 
arbitration. The question of wages, which is 
always a difficult one for boards to handle, has 
been successfully arbitrated by this board time 
and again. The tribunal which constitutes this 
voluntary court of capital and labor is composed 



84 ARBITRATION. 

of fourteen members.* The firm is represented 
by two of its members and five foremen; and the 
workmen by three handworkmen, two rollers, one 
bunch maker, and one packer. Thus it is that 
all the various interests of the employed are 
represented on the board. Since January, 1879, 
the operation and results of the board of arbitra- 
tion have been of remarkable fairness and suc- 
cess; and the language of the employers, in a 
letter to the writer, after five years of practical 
trial, is, " That the principle of arbitration and 
the results following therefrom have proven ad- 
vantageous to both ourselves and our employes, 
far beyond anything that we had hoped from it, 
at its inception." Like the boards at Notting- 
ham and the other parts of England, the court 
of arbitration has not only served to settle dis- 
putes, but it has brought employer and workmen 
together and developed in each a better humanity 
and a desire to do justice to each other. The 
history of the Straiton & Storm board of arbitra- 
tion can be summed up in the single word, 
success; and it has, from the statements of the 
workmen, been a social and moral as well as a 
financial benefit. Its record is a standing and 
unanswerable argument against those who claim 
that arbitration in trade disputes is impracticable. 

* See Appendix II. 



ARBITRATION. 85 

It will be observed that this exists under or by 
virtue of no law, but is strictly voluntary — the 
mutual creation of the workmen and their em- 
ployers. Its awards are intended to be fair and 
honest, and in no instance have they been re- 
pudiated. 

The extensive and important industries of 
mining and iron manufacturing in the State 
of Pennsylvania have called into operation the 
principle of arbitration more frequently there 
than elsewhere in the Union. Various attempts 
have been made to arbitrate disputes between 
employers and workmen in the coal trade of that 
State, but owing to a lack of mutual desire for 
peaceful settlements on both sides they have not 
been successful. The same can be said of the 
iron trade. 

Since 1878, through the efforts of Joseph D. 
Weeks of Pittsburgh, whose report on voluntary 
arbitration in England has made him the pioneer 
advocate of that system in this country, popular 
sentiment, both of capitalists and workmen, has 
surely drifted to a favorable consideration of 
arbitration. The reason of the general failure 
of efforts at arbitrating in Pennsylvania has been 
due principally to the fact that there was no 
system in the boards; and again they were 
usually selected and created during a strike, or 



56 aei-:ieatio>-. 

impending a dispute. The contestants were in 
no mood for a peaceful settlement of their 
rrouKes. It was like embassadors of peace 
coming on a battle field, and seeking to arrive at 
terms amid the smoke and din of conflict. Suc- 
cessful arbitration must have boards that are 
pre-existing to a strike. This difficulty has been 
provided for by recent legislation. The law 
popularly known as the "Wallace Act," on ac- 
count of its author. William A. Wallace, of 
Clearfield, which became a law April 30, 1883, is 
the first piece of legislation in this country prac- 

Ay grasping the principle of voluntary arbi- 
tration. It provides for the creation of tribunals 
of arbitration in the iron, steel, glass, textile 
fabrics, and coal trades. The law simply gives 
official birth to the tribunal, and invests it with 

er of investigation of disputes where they 
are voluntarily submitted. It is unquestiom 
the first effort at systematic arbitration ever 
proposed in this country. In its operation and 
effects it has. where it has been fairly tested, 
proved of decided advantage* Of course, the 
submission of all questions under this law being 
purely voluntary, and the awards having no legal 

ompulsory force, its principal value is in 
giving character, official bearing, and system to 

'•:: APPKSDIX ELL 



ARBITRATION. 87 

tribunals acting under it. Its sessions and pro- 
ceedings are under the eye of the public. 

In Ohio there have been various attempts at 
arbitration, but they have generally been during 
a strike, or in a fixed and passionate dispute. 
There has been no systematic effort made to 
advance the principle until very recently. 

In 1874, in the Tuscarawas Valley, arbitration 
between the miners and operators was attempted, 
the full proceedings of which are recorded by the 
Mine Inspector in his report for 1876. The 
Miners' National Association, to prevent a strike, 
proposed a settlement by arbitration. It was 
willingly entered into, and the award made, 
which satisfied all, but was disregarded by one 
leading coal company, and the arbitration was a 
failure. In 1882, according to the Report of the 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, successful arbitration 
was accomplished in the shoe trade at Cincinnati. 
A voluntary board of arbitration, similar to that 
of Straiton & Storm, of New York, was organized 
by employers and employed; and it is stated that 
it successfully settled differences in work and 
wages during its existence. 

On February 10, 1885, the Legislature of Ohio 
passed without a dissenting vote, a bill prepared 
and introduced by the writer, providing for the 
creation and operation of tribunals of voluntary 



) 



88 ARBITRATION. 

arbitration.* The law contains the successful 
features of voluntary arbitration as practiced in 
England and on the Continent. While its opera- 
tions are purely voluntary, it affords a cheap, 
honest, and effective method for settling trade 
disputes without strikes or lock-outs. Its semi- 
official character makes it partly a public board 
or institution. The Ohio law, while modelled 
after, is essentially different from, the " Wallace 
Act" of Pennsylvania, in many respects. The 
most important difference is that the awards of 
the board are binding, in honor, upon the parties 
thereto without their subsequent ratification. 
They pledge themselves, in Ohio, upon the sub- 
mission of the question, to abide by the award; 
in Pennsylvania it requires an acceptance before 
the award is binding. As yet there has been no 
practical application in Ohio of the law; but it 
must be said that no occasion has arisen whereby 
the law could be tested. Certainly, with Penn- 
sylvania, Ohio is most in need of the application 
of the peace principle in labor disputes. The 
conflict in the Hocking Valley crippled the capital 
of the State, and almost beggared the labor of 
that region. The cost, yet unknown and uncal- 
culated, will equal the tax duplicate of a great 
city. 

*See Appendix IV. 



ARBITRATION. 89 

Ohio has too many interests at stake to over- 
look the fatality of strikes. The question of how 
to best give labor and capital, within her border, 
a "fair field and no favor," is of the highest 
importance to the State. By the census of 1880, 
she had 20,099 workshops, and in them there was 
employed 173,609 workers; her labor thus em- 
ployed were paid $62,000,000 annually, and the 
capital invested to employ these hands and pay 
such wages amounted to $189,000,000. Her coal 
measures include an area of nearly 11,000 acres, 
and the yearly production therefrom averages 
6,000,000 tons. Her average annual production of 
iron ore is nearly 200,000 tons, and in 1880 nearly 
550,000 tons of pig-iron was manufactured within 
her boundaries. Can it be said that Ohio is not 
interested in avoiding trade disputes? And is 
not arbitration a vital question to her industries, 
her capital, and her labor? 

Yet, notwithstanding the immense value that 
a system of arbitration would be to the industrial 
capital of the United States, its practical applica- 
tion has been decidedly limited. But as years go 
by, and time and experience develop the futility 
of strikes in bringing benefit to labor, the ob- 
serving non-combatants sustain the doctrine that 
peaceful arrangement of disputes is as desirable 
and reasonable among men as between nations. 



90 ARBITRATION. 

There is a large, intelligent, and influential 
element of citizenhood in this country that, upon 
questions affecting the working masses, exercise a 
most potent and widespread influence. I refer to 
the trades unions of the United States. No 
movement, be it worthy or unworthy, can for an 
instant be advanced among the working people 
unless it has their approval. Therefore it be- 
comes a pertinent and necessary question, to ask, 
What will the trades unions do upon the matter 
of voluntary arbitration? Will they oppose it? 
Do they approve it? 



CHAPTER VII 



TRADES UNIONS AND ARBITRATION. 



ALL men have a right to combine for the 
accomplishment of an end just and bene- 
ficial to those co-operating for that pur- 
pose and not against the well-being of society. I 
am not a member of, nor in any way connected 
with trades unions, but I understand and am 
satisfied, that their ends are legitimate, just, and 
necessary. There may have been in their history, 
and there undoubtedly has been, disorder, injus- 
tice, and crime associated with their membership, 
but they are to be held no more responsible for 
such, than political meetings and associations are 
for violations of law which often attend them. 
The evil that is in them is not from them, nor 
of them. 

" In their essence, trades unions are voluntary 
associations of workmen for mutual assistance in 
securing generally the most favorable conditions 



92 ARBITRATION. 

of labor. This is their primary and fundamental 
object, and includes all efforts to raise wages or 
resist a reduction in wages; to diminish hours 
of labor or resist attempts to increase the working 
hours; and to regulate all matters relating to 
methods of employment or discharge, and mode 
of working. They have other aims also, some of 
them not less important than those embraced in 
the foregoing definition; and the sphere of their 
action extends to almost every detail connected 
with the labor of the workman and the wellbeing 
of his everyday life."* 

Both employer and employed have a perfect 
right to combine to further their interests, pro- 
vided that neither interfere with the just and 
honest sphere of the other. The co-operation 
and organization of labor dates from early his- 
tory, and such organizations have been recom- 
mended by the past years of experience. The 
trades unions have been an unquestioned benefit 
to workingmen in the past. At no time have 
their uses and influence been more necessary 
than at the present day. When labor and capital 
approach terms of peace and friendship, the more 
useful will be the trade union to each. Contrary 
to the impressions of many, there has been no 
more active force in society than trades unions, in 

* Conflicts of Labor and Capital.— George Howell, p. 11,7. 



ARBITRATION. 93 

advocating and sustaining the system of peaceful 
arbitration between workmen and employers. 
The wide spread notion that they are composed 
of disturbing and capital-hating demagogues is 
simply a popular delusion. The principles and 
actions of trades unions, when investigated and 
studied, clearly prove this. 

In England they have been the warmest ad- 
vocates of arbitration. It is an article of the 
constitution of almost every labor association in 
Great Britain, to advocate in every dispute a 
submission to peaceful adjustment; and it is this 
influence that has made voluntary arbitration a 
settled question and a practical institution in 
England. 

The President of the Trades Unions' Congress, 
which represented in 1877 nearly 700,000 mem- 
bers at its session that year, in his address said: 
"The principle of appeal to facts and reasons 
instead of brute force is rational, and at once 
commends itself to the judgment of men. There 
is no wonder, therefore, that the principle of 
arbitration for settling disputes has grown very 
rapidly. In the hosiery trade in the midland 
counties, we were among the first who adopted it, 
and we do not regret having done so. The work- 
men have sometimes had adverse decisions; but 
on the whole it has worked better than the old 



94 ARBITRATION. 

mode. It is gratifying to find that the workmen 
generally are the first to adopt this intelligent 
and enlightened system. In some disputes which 
have arisen in the country, notably the West 
Lancashire strike, the employers refused to sub- 
mit to arbitration, although the men suggested it 
on three occasions. My own experience as a 
member of one of these boards has led me to this 
conclusion: if a board be properly constituted, 
and proper arrangements are made to give pub- 
licity to the facts of a case, the result generally 
will be a righteous award. I was glad to hear 
that the National Miners' Union have decided to 
offer arbitration in every dispute, and it forms a 
part of their rules. It is a rational arrangement, 
and it would be a good thing if all would adopt 
it. I think, too. . arbitration boards should be 
open to the press and the public. Workmen 
have nothing to fear from either the one or the 
other. We want right and justice to rule, and 
we are not afraid of publicity. When men and 
employers gather round a board to talk over 
differences and try to adjust them, they give 
evidence of their manhood. Beasts and reptiles 
fight and tear each other, and carry out the law 
of the strongest, but men reason and think, and 
by this means show their dignity, and arrive at 
much better conclusions and far less costlv. 



ARBITRATION. 95 

Boards for settling disputes would not do away 
with unions; they would still be needed, and 
under increased necessity to enforce the decision 
of the board when given in favor of the work- 
men." 

At the present time it is estimated that in 
England there are 800,000* members of trades 
unions. Their almost unanimous voice is for 
arbitration in industrial pursuits. And it is a 
fact in the history of arbitration, that the initia- 
tory steps towards this peaceful method was 
inaugurated by the trades unions. 

In the United States the same sentiment pre- 
vails among trades unions in relation to arbitra- 
tion. The number of members is much greater 
in this country than in England, but no authori- 
tative estimate can be given. However, every 
labor organization in the United States, with the 
remarkable exception of one, openly advocates 
and recommends arbitration in preference to 
strikes or lock-outs. The exceptional case is the 
Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel 
Workers, an organization of wide spread influ- 
ence and large membership. Their objection, 
though, is not to the principle of arbitration, but 
rather to its practical application. The Knights 

* Trades Unions; Their Origin and Objects, Influence and Efficacy.— Wm. 
Trant, London, 188h. 



ARBITRATION. 

of Labor, the most powerful and numerous labor 
organization in this country, ha? for one of its 

linal principles the expression of confidence 
in just arbitration, and always recommends its 
application in place of a strike. So it can be 
safely said that in the trades unions of the United 
States tribunals of arbitration will find a friend 
and supporter. 

The trades unions are a powerful assistant to 
honest and thorough arbitration, as well as to 
a just examination of the dispute. Their syste- 
matic method of collecting and preserving the 
statistics of labor makes the information within 
their knowledge very important. They are the 
natural channels to direct the arguments and 

se of the figures of wages before a tribunal 
of arbitration. Again, they are invaluable as one 
of the influential factors in preventing the re- 
pudiation of an award. The experience of the 
past has shown that there has been less repudia- 
tion of awards by workingmen than by em- 

r ers and capitalists. This is largely due to 
the obligations of honor promulgated and sus- 
tained by the discipline of the trades unions. 
Judge Rupert Kettle, whose experience in arbitra- 
tion has been referred to, says that he has found 
in the trades unions a most valuable adjunct to 
Lai sentiment in confirming and accepting 



ARBITRATION. 97 

an award. The same can be said of the trades 
unions in this country. 

I have dwelt at length upon the relations 
of trades unions to arbitration because there is a 
wide spread and delusive idea prevalent among 
many that they are opposed to it, and their prin- 
cipal object is to foment strife and encourage 
strikes. Such is not so. And if capital will join 
hands with organized labor, the day of strikes 
and battles between employer and employed is 
gone forever before the peaceful and sensible 
reign of arbitration. And in doing this the man 
of money will lose none of the legitimate control 
of the results of his genius and thrift; and the 
man of labor will elevate himself into the domain 
of a broader and better humanity. 



APPENDIX. 



APPENDIX I. 



ARBITRATION IN THE ENGLISH TRADES. 



The following report on English arbitration 
was made by Alsager H. Hill, L. L. B., of London, 
to the Massachusetts Bureau of Labor Statistics, 
in 1877. It is of interest as showing the condi- 
tion of the various trades at that time with 
reference to the principle of arbitration and 
conciliation. 

According to the record of Mr. Crompton, the English 
working classes have given the most favorable reception 
to the proposal for courts and boards of arbitration and 
conciliation. As far back as 1866, Mr. George Odger 
introduced the subject of arbitration at a large meeting in 
Sheffield, and then expressed the opinion that strikes were 
to the social world what wars were to the political world — 
they became crimes unless they were prompted by absolute 
necessity. Where industries are not localized, but, on the 
contrary, scattered over the country, arbitration arrange- 
ments necessarily become more difficult. In the more 
highly organized of these trades, the question of wages 
is not so often raised by arbitration, and in some, very 
slight alterations have taken place in a long series of years. 



102 ARBITRATION. 

The engineers have, as in the case of the nine hours' strike 
at Newcastle, in 1871, so ably recorded by Mr. John 
Burnett, the Secretary of the Amalgamated Engineers, been 
willing to submit questions in dispute to arbitration ; but 
the great variety of operatives employed in this industry 
makes the system more difficult to adjust satisfactorily. 
Mr. John Burnett has, however, expressed his opinion that 
' ; a scheme of arbitration might be arranged so as to apply 
to the various peculiarities of the engineering trade." 

The brassworkers have made an experiment in arbitra- 
tion, but it does not seem to have been successful. 

At Sheffield the employers did not seem disposed to 
meet the overtures of the men, who, through the carpenters, 
desired to form a board. 

The bricklayers cannot be reported as having distinctly 
pledged themselves to the system of arbitration ; but Mr. 
Coulson, the Secretary of the Operative Bricklayers' Society, 
has endeavored to establish boards as opportunities have 
arisen. 

The masons have not as a class shown so strong a 
desire for arbitration as the other classes of building 
operatives ; and, in the language of Mr. Crompton, " they 
have a conservative tenacity which tends to prevent them 
from changing some practices which cannot stand the test 
of criticism." At Bristol, however, a code of rules has been 
drawn up between the Master's Association and that of the 
Operative Stone Masons. One rule provides that " six 
employers and six operatives act as a standing committee 
to hear and determine any minor disputes that may arise 
from time to time as to the intention and working of the 
rules, and their decision shall be equally binding on both 
parties, and no suspensions of labor shall take place 
pending the decision of the conciliation committee." 



ARBITRATION. 103 

Among painters, though there is no permanent board 
in the trade, a code of working rules was established at 
Manchester in 1870, agreed upon by six operatives and six 
employers. According to this code, there must be six 
months' notice of any change, which is settled by concilia- 
tion if possible ; if not, by reference to some arbitrator. At 
Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester, and Nottingham, arbitra- 
tion has also taken place in this branch of trade. 

In the potteries a board of conciliation and arbitration 
has been in existence since 1868 for the china and earthen 
ware manufactories. The board is established on the 
model of the Nottingham boards. " The President presides 
over such meetings of the board as are not convened for the 
purpose of arbitration ; but a standing referee presides over 
all arbitrations by the board, and his decision is final in the 
event of an equal vote." Mr. Crompton points out that the 
advantage of this seems to be, that the referee is not called, 
or arbitration attempted, until the board has failed to settle 
by conciliation; in which case there is to be one final 
arbitration arrived at, if possible, without difference. The 
award is made subject to a month's notice on either side. 
The settlement of the prices of labor is, however, for a 
year. 

In the chemical trade of Northumberland and Durham, 
a board of arbitration and conciliation was established in 
1875 ; but it is of too recent formation for any results to be 
reported. This board has a by-law especially directed 
against strikes and lock-outs. 

In the boot and shoe trade, no board of a formal 
character has yet been established ; but a resolution has 
been passed at Stafford in support of one in the future. At 
Leicester, also, steps have been taken recently to form a 
similar board. 



104 AKBITKATION. 

In the woollen and worsted trades of Yorkshire, there 
have been no boards of arbitration or conciliation, nor has 
arbitration been resorted to as a means of settling disputes. 

In the East Lancashire cotton trade, there is no system 
of arbitration or conciliation; but committees composed 
of employers and employed are appointed from time to 
time for the purpose of settling disputes, and they argue 
the question till one side gives in. Mr. Birtwhistle, the 
Secretary of the East Lancashire Amalgamated Weavers' 
Association, is of the opinion they ultimately will have to 
resort to arbitration. 

In the printing trade, a court of arbitration was 
established in 1853 ; but the court broke up because the 
men, while accepting the award as a decision in an actual 
dispute, refused to accept it as a decision binding in all 
other cases arising out of past contracts, and involving 
similar questions. 

In the Typographical Trades Union, arbitration has 
been suggested, but not yet adopted. 

At Manchester, a question in dispute has been settled, 
however, in conference between the masters and men in the 
printing trade. 

Among unskilled laborers, with the exception of the 
laborers who are represented on the Birmingham board in 
building trade, no settled form of arbitration has yet been 
arranged ; and, until this large class is more thoroughly 
organized within its own lines by union, such arbitration 
will be difficult, if not indeed impossible. 

Among agricultural laborers, into whose ranks the 
spirit of organization is fast infusing itself, no arbitration 
has yet taken place ; but Mr. Howard Evans, editor of The 
English Laborer, Mr. Crompton, and others, have written in 
favor of the adoption of the system in future disputes. 



APPENDIX II. 



SPECIMEN OF AN AMERICAN ARBITRATION 

BOARD. 



I give below the Constitution and By-Laws 
of the Straiton & Storm Board of Arbitration. 
It is the first systematic application of the 
principle in this country. 

ARTICLE I. 

Section 1. The firm of Straiton & Storm and their 
workmen herewith agree to organize a Board of Arbitration, 
to whom shall be submitted all questions of wages and 
such other matters as may be in dispute between employer 
and employe. 

ARTICLE II. 

Sec. 1. The workmen of the firm of Straiton & Storm 
shall elect at a regular annual meeting Forty delegates, as 
hereinafter set forth. 

Sec. 2. The Hand-ivorkmen shall elect fifteen delegates, 
as follows : Four from the second floor ; Seven from the 
third floor ; Four from the factory on Thirty -third street. 



106 ARBITRATION. 

Sec. 3. The Ratters shall elect eleven delegates, as 
follows : Four from the fourth floor : Four from the fifth 
floor ; Three from the factory on Thirty-third street. 

■Si-:. -. Th :rs shall elect seven delegates, 

-lows: Three from the fourth floor; Three from the 
fifth floor : One from the factory on Thirty-third street. 

Sec. 5. The Packers shall elect seven delegates, as 
follows : Four from the sixth floor : One from the first 
floor : Two from th ry on Thirty -third street. 

Sec. 6. Bunch-makers, to be eligible as delegates, must 
be twenty-one years of age. 

Sec. 7. The annual election of delegates shall take 
place on the last Monday in June. Nominations are to be 
made oe wee election. 

Sec. h Should the number of delegates at anytime 
be less than ten. they shall elect by ballot and for the 
unexpired term the whole number of delegates, as provided 
for in Section 1. Article II. 

Sec. 9. Only such employes, who have been in the 

employ of the firm six months previous to each election. 

shall be eligible as delegates. 

Sec. 10. Only such employes, who have been in the 
loy f the firm four weeks previous to the annual 

election, shall have the right to vote for delegates. 

ARTICLE III. 

Sec. 1. One week after the annual election, the 

delegates thereat, chosen by the different branches of 

employes, shall meet separately, organize, and elect from 

their respective delegates their representatives in the Board 

Arbitration. 



ARBITRATION. 107 

Sec. 2. The Board of Arbitration shall consist of 
fourteen members, as follows : 

Three Hand-workmen 3 

Two Rollers 2 

One Bunch-maker 1 

One Packer 1 

Two Members of the Firm 2 

Five Foremen 5 

14 
Sec 3. Immediately after the election of the repre- 
sentatives of the workmen to the Board of Arbitration, the 
same shall meet and organize by the election, through 
ballot, of a President and Secretary. 

Sec 4. At all the meetings of the Board of Arbitra- 
tion, the firm of Straiton & Storm and its representatives 
shall constitute part of the said Board, as specified and set 
forth in Section 2, Article III. 

Sec 5. Should vacancies occur in the Board of 
Arbitration, the delegates of the respective branches im- 
mediately shall proceed to fill such vacancies as specified 
and set forth in Section 1, Article III. 

APvTICLE IV. 

Sec 1. The Board of Arbitration shall hear such 
evidence as may appear to be necessary to a proper 
understanding of the questions before the Board. 

Sec 2. All questions shall be decided by an open 
vote. At any final vote, the names of the members of the 
Board shall be called in alphabetical order, and the vote is 
to be given in "Aye" or "Nay." 

Sec 3. The decisions of a majority of the Board 
of Arbitration shall be binding on all the parties concerned. 



108 ARBITRATION. 

Sec. 4. All decisions affecting the interests of either 
employers or employes must be had in the presence of a 
full Board. 

Sec. 5. Whenever, at any meeting, a final vote is to be 
taken on any main question, all the delegates of the 
different branches shall be present at such meeting. 

Sec 6. If a member of the Board is absent at any 
meeting whereat a final vote on any main question is to be 
taken, the place of the absent member shall immediately 
be filled by the respective delegation. 

Sec. 7. Whenever any question, on which a final vote 
is to be taken, is properly before the board, meetings shall 
be held daily until the said matter has been decided upon. 

ARTICLE V. 

Sec. 1. At a tie vote on any main question, and after 
five ballots, each member of the Board, with the exception 
of the President, shall name one person, who there and 
then shall join the Board for the purpose of electing an 
arbitrator. 

Sec. 2. The workmen shall confine the selection of 
said persons to the delegates of their respective branches. 

Sec. 3. The firm shall confine the selection of said 
persons to persons connected with the firm, either as 
employers or employes. 

Sec. 4. The arbitrator shall be selected by a majority 
of the whole twenty-seven votes cast. 

Sec 5. Pending the election of the arbitrator, motions 
for recess or adjournment are not in order. 

Sec 6. After the election of the arbitrator, the 
functions of the thirteen persons chosen as temporary 
members of the Board, as specified and set forth in the 



ARBITRATION. 109 

first, second, and third Sections, Article V., shall cease with 
the final transactions of the businsss then before the Board. 

ARTICLE VI. 

Sec. 1. If the firm of Straiton & Storm, at any time, 
should arrive at the conclusion that the Board of Arbitra- 
tion no longer answers its purposes — namely, the fair and 
equitable adjustment of all differences between their em- 
ployes and themselves — then the firm shall give written 
notice to the President and Secretary of the said Board 
of Arbitration, as it is then constituted, of their unwilling- 
ness to be bound by the decisions of the said Board. Three 
months after such notification the functions of the Board 
of Arbitration shall cease to be binding on either party, 
and the said Board shall be abolished. 

Sec. 2. If the employes of Straiton & Storm, who are 
governed by the decisions of the Board of Arbitration, at 
any time, should arrive at the conclusion that the said 
Board no longer answers its purposes as specified in Section 
1, Article VI., and a petition be presented to the firm with 
the signatures of one-third of such employes thereto at- 
tached, demanding the abolition of the said Board of 
Arbitration, then the employes governed by said Board 
shall vote upon the question ; if it should appear that 
two-thirds of their number favor the abolition of the said 
Board of Arbitration, it shall, at the expiration of three 
months, cease to exist, and all things pertaining thereto 
shall be null and void. 



110 ARBITRATION. 



BY-LAWS 



ARTICLE I. 

Section 1. It shall be the duty of the President to 
preside at all meetings, preserve order, and decide all points 
of parliamentary law. 

Sec. 2. Whenever requested by a majority of the men 
interested, the Secretary shall notify each member of the 
Board of Arbitration of the time and place of a meeting 
of said Board to be held within three days of the date of 
such request. 

Sec* 3. The meetings shall be called to order within 
fifteen minutes of the appointed time. 

Sec 4. Seven members shall constitute a quorum for 
the transaction of all business, except the casting of a final 
vote on any main question. 

ARTICLE II. 

Sec 1. One of every fifty employes shall have the 
privilege to appear before the Board of Arbitration to 
represent their case, but such representation shall never be 
less than three. 

Sec 2. Such representatives may present their views 
in writing or otherwise. 

Sec 3. If verbal, they shall confine their remarks to 
the subject then before the Board, and they shall not 
occupy more than fifteen minutes. 



ARBITRATION. Ill 

Sec. 4. In no case shall these representatives enter 
into any other discussion than a plain statement of their 
case. The representatives shall be bound to answer all 
such questions as the members of the Board may lay before 
them. 

Sec. 5. Such representatives shall not be members 
of the Board of Arbitration or of the delegations con- 
stituting the same. 

Approved at a meeting of the Board of Arbitration. 

May 31, 1884. 



APPENDIX III 



A BUNDLE OF LETTERS ON THE SUBJECT. 

The following letters contain expressions on 
arbitration in trade disputes, and were addressed 
to the writer in the winter of 1884. Some of 
them are from leading officers in prominent labor 
organizations, and others are expressive of the 
experience and observation of that system. 

A. Strasser. President of the Cigar Makers' 
International Union of America, writes from 
New York City as follows: 



1. The intelligent members of our organization favor 
arbitration without an exception, because it is a means 
of preventing hasty and impulsive strikes. 

2. Arbitration is always preferable to a strike or 
lock-out : but it depends on the consent of both parties. 
In Cincinnati, where our members are locked out. since 
March S. 1SS4. the manufacturers have refused to arbitrate. 
even declined to come to a conference. 



ARBITRATION. 113 

3. We have no regular system of arbitration in force, 
but the majority of the unions practice the same on all 
occasions. 

4. The best method of paving the way for arbitration 
is the legislation of trades unions by State and nation, 
which will strengthen the labor organizations. 



Yours very respectfully, 

A. STRASSER, President 

The Grand International Brotherhood of Loco- 
motive Engineers, through one of its chief 
officers, replied: 

* * * Your letter asking for my opinion concerning 
the settling of disputes between capital and labor by 
arbitration is received, and in reply will say that I. regard it 
as the best and most just method of adjusting all differ- 
ences that arise between employers and employes. As to 
our organization, we favor it, and are ready at all times to 
submit our differences, that we cannot settle, to a board 
of arbitration ; and I believe the intelligent workmen 
of the country are a unit in favor of arbitration in 
preference to strikes. Yours truly, 

P. M. ARTHUR, G. C. E. 

Robert Howard, Secretary of the Spinners' 
Union of Fall River, Mass., and one of the 
Legislative Committee of the Federation of 
Organized Trades and Labor Unions of the 
United States and Canada, writes: 



114 ARBITRATION. 

* * * I am entirely opposed to compulsory 

arbitration by our courts. I think such a course would act 
detrimentally to the interest of labor. The courts are too 
corrupt, and would invariably decide in favor of capital. I 
find it so in this vicinity. * * * Arbitration I approve 
of when voluntary between employers and employes. I 
firmly believe that if such boards were formed for the 
purpose of conciliation and arbitration in the event of 
disputes, 90 per cent, of them would be settled by concilia- 
tion, rendering arbitration unnecessary. 

I am very much in favor of voluntary boards of 
arbitration. Respectfully. 

ROBERT HOWARD. 

Sec. Spinners? Union. 

The practical operations of the " Wallace Act " 
of Pennsylvania is given in the two following 
letters. One is from an operator and capitalist 
who served on the Coal Trade Tribunal of Arbi- 
tration in the Fifth District of Pennsylvania; the 
other is from John Flannery. a representative 
of a labor organization, and also a member of the 
same tribunal. 

William A. Mcintosh, the operator member. 
writes : 



The Coal Trade Tribunal of the Fifth Judicial District 
of Pennsylvania was licensed under the Wallace Act, on 
the 19th of May, 1883, and consisted of five representatives 
of miners, five representatives of operators, and an umpire 



ARBITRATION. 1 1 5 

previously chosen by the other members of the Tribunal, 
and being, as required by the act, their unanimous choice. 

The creation of this Tribunal was during a strike, the 
operators offering three cents per bushel for mining, and 
the miners demanding three and a half cents. 

After several lengthy discussions it became apparent 
that an agreement could not be arrived at without con- 
siderable delay ; and, as an earnest of good intentions, it 
was ordered that the miners resume work immediately, at a 
price to be thereafter fixed by the Tribunal, the price to 
date back to the time of the resumption of work. 

Work was generally resumed without delay. Com- 
mittees, consisting of an equal number of each side, were 
appointed to gather such statistics as might have a bearing 
on the question of prices of mining. These committees 
reported at a meeting held June 11, the reports being 
epitomes of information obtained by the committees, and 
showing average cost of production and selling price 
of coal during the three years immediately preceding. 

Several meetings of the Tribunal were held ; but, 
failing to agree upon a price to be paid for mining, it was 
decided that the umpire be called in. The question in 
dispute was submitted to him ; and, after hearing the 
arguments of both sides, he made his award; viz., that the 
price to be paid for mining should be three and a quarter 
cents per bushel. 

This award, while apparently a disappointment to both 
sides, was accepted and concurred in during the time it was 
intended to cover ; viz., until October 1, 1883. 

In September following, this Tribunal met for the 
purpose of fixing upon the price to be paid for mining from 
October 1, 1883, to April 1, 1884, the operators offering three 



116 ARBITRATION. 

and a quarter cents and the miners demanding three and 
three-quarter cents per bushel. 

Being unable to agree, the services of the umpire were 
requested. After hearing the arguments on both sides, the 
umpire made his award; viz., that the price of mining 
should be three and a half cents per bushel. This award 
did not appear to be satisfactory to all, but was accepted. 

In March of 1884, several meetings of the Tribunal 
were held to fix upon the price to be paid for mining from 
April 1, 1884, till October 1, 1884, resulting in the adoption 
of the rate of three cents per bushel, without the aid of the 
umpire. To many miners this action was unsatisfactory, 
although the price was generally accepted ; and when the 
new Tribunal was created, not one of the miners' representa- 
tives on the first Tribunal was selected to serve on the 
second. 

This ended the work of the first Tribunal ; and, while 
there were many hard word tilts between miner and 
operator, I believe all were actuated with a sincere desire to 
do equal justice, and that which would result in the mutual 
good of all concerned. While the awards of the Tribunal 
were not entirely satisfactory to both sides, as indeed it is 
hardly to be expected that they always will be, I believe the 
interests of both miners and operators were promoted, as 
strikes and lock-outs were avoided, and this is, frequently, 
of more importance than the matter of a small difference in 
price of mining. 

In consequence of unavoidable delays, the present 
Tribunal was not licensed until October 4, 1884, four of the 
operators' representatives on the first Tribunal being chosen 
on the second, but none of the former representatives of the 
miners. 



ARBITRATION. 117 

The present Tribunal has decided that the price of 
mining in effect prior to October 1, 1884, shall continue 
indefinitely, and that the Tribunal shall meet for the pur- 
pose of considering the question of price of mining when- 
ever three or more members signify that to be their wish. 

Having been connected with all efforts here to settle 
differences between employers and employes in the coal 
trade, by arbitration, I would call your attention to one 
very valuable provision of the Wallace Act, one which I 
regard as essential to success ; viz., the provision thafthe 
umpire shall be chosen before any other steps are taken, 
except the choosing of the members of the tribunal proper. 

In all previous attempts at arbitration in the coal 
trade, the plan has been to choose the representatives of the 
two sides, who, if they could not agree regarding the point 
at issue, were to choose the umpire to decide. 

The result in every case has been that the arbitrators 
failed to agree, and such a spirit of distrust was engendered 
that they would not agree upon an umpire ; hence failure. 

In order to insure success it is also necessary that all 
arbitrators should be fully empowered to do what they may 
deem best for all concerned without the fear of the dis- 
pleasure of those they represent, in case the conclusions 
arrived at should not be in full harmony with the ideas 
of their constituents. 

I have an abiding faith that arbitration will grow to be 
the popular method of settling disputes between capital 
and labor ; and that while each unsuccessful attempt may 
render the next attempt more difficult, it will also serve 
to bring to light the obstacles in the way, which being- 
discerned will be the more readily overcome. 
Yours truly, 

WM. A. McINTOSH. 



118 ARBITRATION. 

John Flannery, Secretary of the Miners' 
Union, under date of December 22, 1884, says: 



In reply to yours of the 18th inst., on arbitration, its 
work, etc., I can say that it has operated here in accordance 
with the act of 1883 known as the •"Voluntary Trade 
Tribunal Act." and has done more good during the last 
twenty months for the railroad miners and operators than it 
gets credit for doing. There has been no strikes, where 
there used to be every summer, lasting from two to five 
months. There has been no " exiles " made by being 
"victimized'' for taking active parts in strikes to keep 
wages up. The trade, though dull this year, has suffered 
none through uncertainty, and contracts have been kept 
that properly belong to this district. 

If justice were done to arbitration, which only can be 
where there is strong and systematic organization on both 
sides, it would soon become a subject for national legisla- 
tion. I would favor a system that would make awards be 
enforced, instead of voluntary, but I have the name of an 
extremist in my advocacy of that system. 

The one great drawback is that any one-horse employer 
may break the price awarded, and peaceable and fair 
employers must follow suit, or suffer to be underbid in the 
market and lose contracts, to the gain of the adventurer 
and foe of peace and honesty in labor matters. 

Too much cannot be said favorable to this grand system 
when put into proper shape. If one could spare time to 
give you the figures to show the thousands sacrificed by 
capital to subjugate labor, and the fabulous amount lost by 



ARBITRATION. 11 ( .) 

labor to outfight capital, not to speak of the suffering 
of innocent souls by hunger and cold, it would surprise 
you, just for this district alone. Then, what is gained? 
There is no principle established to benefit trade or 
humanity ; and the justice of the result established by a 
strike is always questionable, because it is might against 
right, with merit and justness left out of the controversy. 

The great object is to enforce the awards, which cannot 
be done without a strong and well disciplined organization 
among workmen, and the same of employers, who go in to 
do right and to sit down summarily on wrong doing. An 
efficient agency established by national or State law, is the 
great requisite of the day to aid in this work, to raise 
humanity out of the slough of strikes. * * * * 
Yours truly, 

JOHN FLANNERY. 



APPENDIX IV. 



THE OHIO ARBITRATION ACT. 



The Constitution of Ohio confers power upon 
the Legislature to establish courts of arbitration 
and conciliation, but they must be voluntary 
tribunals. Section 19, Article IV., says: 

The General Assembly may establish courts of con- 
ciliation, and prescribe their powers and duties ; but such 
courts shall not render final judgment in any case, except 
upon submission, by the parties, of the matter in dispute, 
and their agreement to abide such judgment. 

The following is now the law in Ohio on this 

subject: 

AN ACT 

To authorize the creation and to provide for the operation of 
tribunals of voluntary arbitration to adjust industrial disputes 
between employers and employed. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the 
State of Ohio, That the Court of Common Pleas of each 
county or a Judge thereof in vacation, shall have the power, 
and upon the presentation of the petition, or of the agree- 



ARBITRATION. 121 

merit hereinafter named, it shall be the duty of said court, 
or a Judge thereof in vacation, to issue in the form herein- 
after named, a license or authority for the establishment 
within and for each county of tribunals for voluntary 
arbitration and settlement of trade disputes between 
employers and employed in the manufacturing, mechanical, 
or mining industries. 

Sec. 2. The said petition or agreement shall be sub- 
stantially in the form hereinafter given, and the petition 
shall be signed by at least forty persons employed as 
workmen and by four or more separate firms, individuals, 
or corporations within the county, or by at least four 
employers, each of whom shall employ at least ten work- 
men, or by the representative of a firm, corporation, or 
individual employing not less than forty men in their trade 
or industry, provided, that at the time the petition is 
presented, the Judge before whom said petition is presented, 
may, upon motion, require testimony to be taken as to the 
representative character of said petitioners, and if it 
appears that the said petitioners do not represent the will 
of a majority, or at least one-half of each party to the 
dispute, the license for the establishment of the said 
tribunal may be denied, or may make such other order in 
this behalf, as to him shall seem fair to both sides. 

Sec. 3. If the said petition shall be signed by the 
requisite number of both employers and workmen, and be 
in proper form and contain the names of the persons to 
compose the tribunal, being an equal number of employers 
and workmen, the Judge shall forthwith cause to be issued 
a license substantially in the form hereinafter given, author- 
izing the existence of such tribunal and fixing the time and 
place of the first meeting thereof, and an entry of the 
license so granted shall be made upon the journal of the 



122 ARBITRATION. 

Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the petition 
originated. 

Sec. 4. Said tribunal shall continue in existence for 
one year from the date of the license creating it, and may 
take jurisdiction of any dispute between employers and 
workmen in any mechanical, manufacturing, or mining 
industry or business, who shall have petitioned for the 
tribunal, or have been represented in the petition therefor, 
or may submit their disputes in writing to such tribunal for 
decision. Vacancies occurring in the membership of the 
tribunal shall be rilled by the Judge or court that licensed 
said tribunal, from three names presented by the members 
of the tribunal remaining of that class in which the 
vacancies occur. The removal of any member to an 
adjoining county, shall not cause a vacancy in either the 
tribunal or the post of umpire. Disputes occurring in one 
county may be referred to a tribunal already existing in an 
adjoining county. The place of umpire in any of said 
tribunals and vacancies occurring in such place, shall only 
be filled by the mutual choice of the whole of the repre- 
sentatives, of both employers and workmen constituting 
the tribunal, immediately upon the organization of the 
same. The umpire shall be called upon to act after dis- 
agreement is manifested in the tribunal by failure during 
three meetings held and full discussion had. His award 
shall be final and conclusive upon such matters only as are 
submitted to him in writing and signed by the whole of the 
members of the tribunal, or by parties submitting the 
same. 

Sec. 5. The said tribunal shall consist of not less than 
two employers or their representatives, and two workmen. 
The exact number, which shall in each case constitute the 
tribunal, shall be inserted in the petition or agreement, and 



ARBITRATION. 1 23 

they shall be named in the license issued. The Baid 
tribunal, when convened, shall be organized by the selection 
of one of their number as chairman and one as secretary, 
who shall be chosen by a majority of the members, or 
if such majority cannot be had after two votes, then by 
secret ballot, or by lot, as they prefer. 

Sec. 6. The members of the tribunal shall receive no 
compensation for their services from the city or county, but 
the expenses of the tribunal, other than fuel, light, and the 
use of the room and furniture, may be paid by voluntary 
subscription, which the tribunal is authorized to receive 
and expend for such purposes. The sessions of said 
tribunal shall be held at the county seat of the county 
where the petition for the same was presented, and a room 
in the Court House for the use of said tribunal, shall be 
provided by the County Commissioners. 

Sec 7. When no umpire is acting, the Chairman 
of the tribunal shall have power to administer oaths to all 
witnesses who may be produced, and a majority of said 
tribunal may provide for the examination and investigation 
of books, documents, and accounts pertaining to the 
matters in hearing before the tribunal, and belonging to 
either party to the dispute ; provided, that the tribunal may 
unanimously direct that instead of producing books, 
papers, and accounts before the tribunal, an accountant 
agreed upon by the entire tribunal, may be appointed to 
examine such books, papers, and accounts, and such ac- 
countant shall be sworn to well and truly examine such 
books, documents, and accounts as may be presented to 
him, and to report the results of such examination in 
writing to said tribunal. Before such examination the 
information desired and required by the tribunal shall be 
plainly stated in writing and presented to said accountant, 



124 ARBITRATION. 

which statement shall be signed by the members of said 

tribunal, or by a majority of each class thereof. Attorneys 
at law or other agents of either party to the dispute, shall 
not be permitted to appear or take part in any of the 
proceedings of the tribunal, or before the umpire. 

Sec. 8. When the umpire is ^ he shall preside 

and he shall have all the powers of the Chairman of the 
tribunal ; and his determination upon all questions of 
evidence, or other questions, in conducting the inquiries 
then pending, shall be final. Committees of the tribunal 
consisting of an equal number of each class may be 
-:ituted to examine into any question in dispute be- 
tween employers and workmen which may have been 
referred to said committee by the tribunal, and such com- 
mittee may hear and settle the same finally, when it can be 
done, by a unanimous vote : otherwise the same shall be 
reported to the full tribunal, and there be heard, as if the 
question had not been referred. The said tribunal, in 
connection with the umpire, shall have power to make, 
ordain, and enforce rules for the government of the body 
when in session, to enable the business to be proceeded with 
in order, and to fix its sessions and adjournments; but such 
rules shall not conflict with this statute, nor with any 
of the provisions of the Constitution and laws of Ohio. 

Sec. 9. Before the umpire shall proceed to act, the 
question or questions in dispute shall be plainly defined in 
writing, and signed by the members of the tribunal, or a 
majority thereof of each class, or by the parties submitting 
the same ; and such writing shall contain the submission 
of the decision thereof to the umpire by name, and shall 
provide that his decision thereon, after hearing, shall be 
final. The umpire shall be sworn to impartially decide all 
questions that may be submitted to him during his term 



ARBITRATION. 



125 



of office. The submission and his award may be made in 
the form hereinafter given, and said umpire must make his 
award within ten days from the time the question or 
questions in dispute are submitted to him. Said award 
shall be made to the tribunal ; and if the award is for a 
specific sum of money, said award may be made a matter 
of record by riling a copy thereof in the Court of Common 
Pleas of the county wherein the tribunal is in session. 
When so entered of record it shall be final and conclusive, 
and the proper court may, on motion of any one interested, 
enter judgment thereon ; and when the award is for a 
specific sum of money, may issue final and other process to 
enforce the same. 

Sec. 10. The form of the joint petition or agreement 
praying for a tribunal under this act shall be as follows : 

To the Court of Common Pleas of County (or to a 

Judge thereof as the case may be): 

The subscribers hereto, being the number and having 
the qualifications required in this proceeding, being desirous 
of establishing a tribunal of voluntary arbitration for the 

settlement of disputes in the (here name the 

branch of industiy) trade, and having agreed upon A, B, C, 
D and E, representing the employers, and G, H, I, J and K, 
representing the workmen, as members of said tribunal, 
who each are qualified to act thereon, pray that a license for 

a tribunal in the trade may be issued to said 

persons named above. 



EMLM.OYERS. 



RESIDENCE 



NUMBER 
EMYLOYES 



126 



ARBITRATION. 



EMPLOYES. 



RESIDENCE. 



BY WHOM EMPLOYED. 



Sec. 11. The license to be issued upon such petition, 
may be as follows : 

State of Ohio, ) 

' }- ss. 

County, ) 

Whereas, The joint petition and agreement of four 
employers (or representatives of a firm, corporation, or indi- 
vidual, employing forty men, as the casd may be), and forty 
workmen has been presented to this court, (or if to a judge 
in vacation, so state), praying the creation of a tribunal 
of voluntary arbitration for the settlement of disputes in 

the trade within this county, and naming A, B, 

C, D, and E, representing the employers, and G, H, I, J, 
and K, representing the workmen. Now, in pursuance 
of the statute for such case made and provided, said named 
persons are hereby licensed and authorized to be and exist 
as a tribunal of voluntary arbitration for the settlement 
of disputes between employers and workmen for the period 
of one year from this date, and they shall meet and organize 
on the .... day of , A. D at 

Signed, this .... day of , A. D 

[Signature.] , 

Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas of. ... County. 



Sec 12. When the tribunal agrees to submit a matter 
in controversy to the umpire, it may be in form as follows : 

We, A, B, C, D, and E, representing employers, and G, 
H, I, J, and K, representing workmen, composing a tribunal 



ARBITRATION. 127 

of voluntary arbitration, hereby submit and refer unto the 

umpirage of L. (the umpire of the tribunal of the trade,) 

the following subject-matter, namely : [Here state fully and 
clearly the mutter submitted.] And we hereby agree that his 
decision and determination upon the same shall be binding 
upon us, and final and conclusive upon the question thus 
submitted ; and we pledge ourselves to abide by and carry 
out the decision of the umpire when made. 

Witness our names this .... day of , A. D 

[Signatures.] 

Sec. 13. The umpire shall make his award in writing 
to the tribunal, stating distinctly his decisions on the 
subject-matter submitted. And when the award is for a 
specific sum of money, the umpire shall forward a copy 
of the same to the clerk of the proper court. 

Sec. 14. This act shall be in force from and after its 
passage. 



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